


Uneven Odds

by yokorra



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-06-23
Updated: 2015-07-29
Packaged: 2018-04-05 17:59:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 49,374
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4189557
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yokorra/pseuds/yokorra
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kuvira was exhausted</p><p>Korra wanted Asami</p><p>Mako was... Mako</p><p>Lin had a problem.</p><p>Su was worried.</p><p>Mystery threat?...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. There are always crimes to solve...

**Author's Note:**

> This is an idea I had that was created from a Kuvira week prompt I wrote... Decided to make it into a fic. Let's see where this takes us....

Monday October 7th

Kuvira sighed heavily, filing some documents she’s been working on for the past three hours. She licks the tip of her index finger and thumb, grabbing another piece of paper to sign through and file. Her stomach growls in protest. She hasn’t eaten since last night. It was six in the morning.

Her eyes look up to see Korra across the room from her, doing the same thing she was doing. Well, she’s _supposed_ to be doing the same thing Kuvira is doing. Instead she’s dozing off, her eye lids nearly closed. With the flick of her wrist, Kuvira metal bend the metal around Korra’s wrist, the hand her head was leaning against, down on the desk. The side of Korra’s face hit the top of her desk, causing some pencils and papers to fall off. She shot up immediately.

Kuvira quickly went back to her work, looking as innocent as ever. When her eyes went back to Korra, she was glaring over at her. Kuvira just stuck her tongue out to her. Korra huffed, slumping back into her chair. Kuvira understood the exhaustion. Her and Korra have been working for two days straight. Being police officers wasn’t an easy job, especially since they both were the best. Lin was kind to them, but she always made them work the more demanding crimes. The crimes were fun to handle, but the paperwork that came with them was the exhausting part.

Korra has gotten up, walking towards Kuvira’s desk. She plopped on the edge of Kuvira’s desk, resting her elbows on her thighs. Kuvira arched an eyebrow at her, leaning back in her chair. She folded her arms across her chest. Korra and Kuvira were partners. When Kuvira transferred over here, Lin partnered her up with Korra hesitantly. She knew they both would work well together, but she also knew that they might find themselves into more trouble than necessary. Kuvira had a lot more experience than Korra, since she used to be captain of the Zaofu guard before she moved to Republic City two years ago, but there was no denying that together, her and Korra made an excellent team. They’ve been partners ever since.

But nevertheless, they both deserved to be where they were. They’ve been working hard at this since they were young; Kuvira ever since the age of fourteen, and Korra ever since she was sixteen. Now in their early twenties, they were exactly where they wanted to be, kicking some criminal ass.

"You want to grab a bite to eat?" Korra asked her as she stifled a yawn.

Kuvira slowly nodded her head. "And a drink." she groaned, closing her eyes. She rubbed her fingers on her temples.

Korra snorted. "It’s six in the morning. Don’t you think it’s a little early to drink, Kuvy?"

Kuvira cringed at the name. Korra only called her that when she wanted to annoy Kuvira, or when she was being a smart-ass. Kuvira narrowed her eyes at her. "It’s five o’clock somewhere, avatar." Kuvira leaned forward with a small sigh. "Besides, we haven’t been to bed for two days. I think time is irrelevant right now."

Korra nodded in agreement, hopping off of Kuvira’s desk. "Let me go finish some of the paper work and we’ll be off." she patted her shoulder. "I think you’re gonna have to drink alone. I have to go check on Asami."

Kuvira laughed. "You think that work-oholic girlfriend of yours is even home right now?"

Korra paused for a moment, grinning. "Perhaps you’re right."

"I’m always right." Kuvira said matter-of-factly.

After the paperwork was finished, Korra and Kuvira headed out of the police station with Mako. Kuvira was exhausted. A nice warm meal, a little bit of alcohol, and a nice bed sounded marvelous to her right now. They were all still in uniform as they went to the nearest diner that was open. The three of them slumped down at an empty table, ordering coffee.

"You both are lucky to be off. I still have to work until six tonight." Mako huffed, drinking his coffee black. He and Kuvira liked their coffee the same way. "Always crimes to solve."

Kuvira watched as Korra emptied ten packets of sugar, and five packets of creamer into her coffee with slight disgust. She loved Korra— but her eating habits disturbed Kuvira. You think after being friends with someone for as long as they have been, she might be used to how Korra ate. But it just wasn’t the case.

"I’m happy to be off for the next two days," Korra said as she took a long drink of her coffee. She was looking at the menu with half attention. Korra knew what she wanted to get already. "Asami also has the next two days off. The good thing about dating someone who owns their own company, is that they can work their schedule around you." Korra smiled at that.

"Unless an unexpected crime suddenly came crawling into the city that needed the best police officers Republic City has to offer to handle it." Mako said in his most dramatic, mocking voice.

Kuvira snorted. "Like you said, always crimes to solve."

They had been engulfed in their coffee and breakfast when Kuvira noticed the tv in the corner saying something about a rally downtown. Kuvira lifted her head from her food, nudging Mako to look at the tv. Korra stared at both of them looking confused before she turned around in her chair.

"Hey, turn that up." Mako said to one of the waiters.

" _Non-benders of the United Republic have gathered downtown, causing quite the chaos as they insult benders from all over the nations. The leader of the rally is said to be a masked man who goes by the name, Amon. The rally is currently peaceful, but is concerning a few non-benders and benders alike_. . ."

Mako leaned back in his chair, folding his arms across his chest. "This must have something to do with the missing bender reports—"

"What about missing benders?" Korra and Kuvira said at the same time.

Mako looked at both of them. "Last night I got reports of missing people, who all happen to be benders. Two earth, one water, and three fire." he sighed, shaking his head, gesturing to the tv. "This may be connected to the missing people."

"I don’t know, Mako. The news did say peaceful . . ." Korra shrugged her shoulders. "People go missing all the time, you know?"

Kuvira looked over at Mako. "But you may be right, Mako. These people are protesting about how awful benders are." she huffed. "Children. All of them."

This is when Kuvira missed living in Zaofu. She loved kicking ass, and solving crimes, but Zaofu was so peaceful. Suyin led that city with pride and honor, and she always made sure her citizens were kept into shape. Most of everyone in Zaofu were benders, too. It was easy living in Zaofu. But Kuvira has never been a fan of easy.

Non-benders and benders have always had a tense relationship. It’s because of those benders who make non-benders feel useless, and awful to be who they are. It’s unfair to say someone is weak, just because they weren’t born with any bending. And it’s rude to blame someone who can bend. This is the way they all were born. None of them can help that. Working together, co-existing together, is the best option. Benders need non-benders, the way non-benders need benders. But Kuvira never saw someone for their bending abilities or not. Someone can still be an asshole with or without bending, and someone can be the coolest person.

Mako put some money down on the table. "I should go talk to Lin about this. See you guys later." he waved goodbye as he left the diner in a hurry.

"Still gonna drink?" Korra asked Kuvira.

Kuvira raised her eyebrows. "Why, because you want to join me now?"

Korra nodded. "Might as well."

_____________________

Lin had her fingers pressed against her temple as she listened about the rally on the news. _This early in the morning_? What were they up too? Whatever it was, Lin didn’t like it one bit. The last thing she needed is benders and non-benders in a fight with one another. She could only imagine the strain this might cause her force. She mostly worked with benders, but there were non-benders who worked for her as well. Something like this could cause an unwanted rift between them all. Something Lin didn’t want to deal with.

Mako had come barging into her office, earning a well-deserved glare from her. Mako immediately hesitated, one hand on the door as if he were going to sprint out of there. His face was red and his eyes were wide. Lin sighed, leaning back in her chair, gesturing for him to come in since he already barged in.

"What is it?" she snapped at him.

"Have you been hearing about the rally going on downtown?"

She nodded, rolling her eyes. "Of course I have, kid. It’s beginning to become a big pain in my ass, too. What do you want?"

Mako set down a stack of papers on her desk. "Seven people were reported missing last night—"

"I know that, kid, I am the one who gave you the information." Lin sounded about as annoyed as she currently felt.

"They were benders, Chief."

Lin’s eyebrows pushed together as she grabbed the files Mako just set on her desk. "You think these protesting non-benders have something to do with it?"

Mako shrugged his shoulders. "It’s worth to look into, Chief."

Lin nodded her head, agreeing with him. Missing people were common reports, but seven at one night? All of them benders? That was definitely suspicious to Lin. "Alright. I’ll look into it." Lin stared up at him from her chair. "I want you working on nothing else but this. Continue to keep me updated, got it?"

Mako nodded his head. "Yes, Chief." he said before leaving her office.

Lin went about looking through the files, seeing the files of the seven missing people. Two elders, three middle-aged, and two teenagers. All of them reported going missing last night, around the same time as one another. If these protesters have anything to do with these missing people, they’ll definitely have to pay for it. Personally by her.

As Lin went to grab her phone, it began ringing. Annoyed, she quickly picked it up. "Chief Lin BeiFong, what is it?" she nearly spit out. Her face immediately soften. "Oh, Su, what’s up?"

_______________________

"You’ll be a lovely addition. My father and I would be delighted to have you partner up with Future Industries. BB Industries have been our greatest competitor, and rightfully so. It’s nice to finally be teaming up together." Asami said in her cell phone as she walked outside of Future Industries. "We’ll speak again when you come down here this Wednesday. I’m looking forward to it. Okay, goodbye."

Asami hung up, walking to her car, exhausted from her endless work. She still had a lot to do, but she knew Korra was off already and she promised Korra that she would be home in thirty minutes. Her dad allowed her to have the next two days off, even though Asami had to practically pull his teeth when she mentioned it was because she wanted it off to spend time with Korra. To Asami’s continuous disbelief, he hated Korra with a burning passion. Even after two years of them dating, he still hasn’t softened up to her.

Asami looked at her phone again when she got into her car, getting a text from Korra to pick her up at Kuvira’s apartment. Her text was all over the place. It had lower cases, and capitols where they shouldn’t be. Some of the letters didn’t connect. Asami set her phone down, gripping the steering wheel. She’d been with Korra long enough to know when she was drunk. At seven in the morning, too. What are her and Kuvira thinking?

Asami pulled out of Future Industries, yawning as she drove quickly down the road. She knew this city like the back of her hand. She knew driving fast was dangerous, and she would get pulled over a few times. But she never got tickets, since everyone recognized who she was. Those who didn’t know she was a Sato, they knew she was Korra’s girlfriend. And she had a feeling they didn’t want to deal with Korra’s rage if they knew they gave her a ticket.

Asami was always careful when she drove quickly. Her eyes were alert. She built the car she was driving! Asami has been racing since she was a little girl. She loved driving fast. There was something about it that just made her feel in control.

When she got to Kuvira’s apartment, she pulled out her key, unlocking the door. Kuvira gave her and Korra both a key, just in case of an emergency. Asami loved Kuvira. She was like family to her. And Asami knew Kuvira kept Korra safe while they were on duty, and Asami couldn’t thank her enough for that.

When she got into the apartment, she immediately ducked her head at a flying dart headed her way. She looked up to see Korra looking guilty with wide-eyes. Kuvira bursted into laughter. Asami glanced behind her at the dart stuck in the wall. She turned back to Kuvira and Korra with her hands placed on her hips. Behind them, she saw a bottle of Vodka a quarter gone. She shook her head.

"Ready to go home before you hurt someone, avatar?" that prompted Kuvira to laugh even harder.

Korra slumped her shoulders, grabbing her jacket off Kuvira’s couch. She looked like a little kid who was just scolded by their parent’s in front of all their friends. "She’s the one who suggested we play with metal darts. If you should be mad at anyone, it’s her." Korra mumbled on her way out of the apartment.

Asami waved to Kuvira from behind her shoulder. "Bye Kuvira!" she said as she shut the door, her arm locking around Korra’s. She kissed her cheek. "You look awful."

Korra tried to glare over at her, but failed, grinning instead. "Sorry we all can’t look as perfect as you, Ms Sato."

Asami flipped her hair. "It’s a curse being born this perfect." she teased.

Korra’s arm tightened around her waist, pulling her close to her. Korra was an affection person already, but add some alcohol to the situation, and there was not stopping the amount of affection you were going to receive. Asami didn’t mind it one bit.

"I’ve got a little surprise for you when we get home." Korra whispered in her ear, her breath hot on Asami’s neck.

Asami stumbled as she walked with Korra’s arm still around her. She smiled over at her. "Is that so?"

Korra’s hand traveled down to Asami’s butt. "Mmhmm."

__________________

"Now, now, Lin. I think a visit would be nice. Baatar and Junior are headed down there anyway to finalize some things with Future Industries. Besides, I’ve got to visit Opal anyway." Su said to her sister over the phone.

"You don’t just _visit_ , Su. You bring all of Zaofu with you." Lin said, clearly referring to all of Su’s children. "And it’s still not okay that Wei and Wing nearly destroyed Air Temple Island last time you _visited_."

"They promised to be on their best behavior." Su assured her. "How have things been, anyway? Kuvira hasn’t told me much. I think it’s so I don’t worry. Or is nothing really going on?"

When Su agreed to let Kuvira transfer to Republic City two years ago, Kuvira and her made an agreement that Kuvira would call every single Sunday and fill her in on everything that’s been going on. She also had to come down every holiday to visit. Kuvira kept up with her promise as best as she could, but Su noticed that some of their conversations had been short when talking about Kuvira’s careeer. She just wanted to make sure Kuvira was okay.

"Nothing new, Su." Lin said, but Su could tell that something was off in the tone of her voice. "When you coming down?"

Su pouted as she stood in her office. Everyone over there seemed to be giving her the run around. "This Wednesday."

"That’s in _two_ days, Su." Lin groaned. "Alright, alright. I’ll prepare the city." she joked.

Su rolled her eyes. "Ha, ha. I’ll see you then. Be careful."

"Yeah, okay mom." Lin said mockingly before hanging up.

Su shook her head, sighing. There was a knock at her door before Junior entered her office. She smiled brightly when she saw him. "It’s nice to see you awake, Junior."

He huffed, sitting down on one of her couches. "I’ve never went to bed. A lot to do before father and I head out to Republic City."

"Oh, about that, I’m coming along with you."

He groaned. "Does that mean Wei and Wing are coming, too? Because last time—"

"They’ll behave!" she assured him, just like she had with her older sister. "They miss Opal. And so do I." she inhaled lightly. "Have you spoken to Kuvira of late?"

His eyes widened slightly at the sudden question. "No, we haven’t. We haven’t spoken since she last visited." his cheeks turned a bright red. "Why? Has she mentioned me?"

Su frowned slightly. "I just have a bad feeling about something. I can’t quite put my finger on it."

Her eldest son sat forward, wearing a teasing smile. "You’re always worried."

She smiled over at him. "You may be right about that."

Still, Su couldn’t shake the bad feeling off. Maybe a visit to Republic City was a good idea. It’ll reassure her nerves to be there herself and see how everything is.

____________________

"Bomb it." he ordered.

"Are you sure, boss? It’ll force us back into the dark."

"No, this will be us rising. Trust me. Those benders have another thing coming to them."

"And what about Sato? You sure you can trust him? His daughter is with the avatar . . ."

"I can trust him. He’s proven that much generously to me." he said with a dark smile.

"Okay, boss. We’ll bomb it tonight."

"Good. This is going to be a good night for us."


	2. That's Rough Buddy

Monday October 7th (cont)

Baatar felt tired. He had been working on getting everything in order for the trip to Republic City on Wednesday. He had just finished helping load the airship with his father. Uniting with another company wasn’t easy. Especially since both he and his father lived in Zaofu. He wouldn’t be able to oversee things the way he does here. It bothered him, since he was a perfectionist after all.

The trip would only last a day. It was a lot of work to fly all the way to Republic City, sign documents and drop off new models, and then fly all the way back to Zaofu. But this is how business usually was for Baatar and his father. He was excited to meet Hiroshi and Asami Sato, though. They were a team, and a family unit, like Baatar and his father. It was nice to see them work their company in a similar manner.

That’s why joining them won’t be too difficult. It’ll help business for both companies. The decision to join was a long thought out one. Separate, both companies did fine. They were both on the top of their game. Everyone wanted to work with both. Together— Baatar was sure they’ll be unstoppable.

Baatar removed his glasses, rubbing his eyes. He hasn’t slept and showered for two days. He was notorious for overworking himself. If the project didn’t feel done, Baatar wouldn’t stop until everything was perfect. He took his father’s designs and created a master piece. Baatar had been designing stuff on his own recently, but his father, bless him, didn’t always listen to what Baatar had to say. It definitely bothered him, to have all these creative designs, but not enough time to make them a reality. He was just too busy doing what his father wanted.

Baatar tapped his pencil on the table, sighing heavily. He pushed himself off of the chair he was sitting in. Baatar didn’t feel right to just drop everything off for Future Industries to work on and oversee. He wanted to be as much apart of his creations as he was over here. That’s when the thought came to his mind: _what if he stayed in Republic City longer_? He could oversee things and make sure every thing falls into place the way it has already in his head.

He began striding over to his mother’s office. He knew if this was something he wanted to do, he had to speak to her first. Even before his father. Because if his mother said it were alright, his father would agree as well. That’s how it worked around here. His mother was the boss.

He knocked before he entered. He wasn’t sure if she would even be here, but then again, she was usually always in her office. Especially when she was stressed. When he heard her through the door, he opened it, giving her a warm smile. She had a stress frown, but smile nonetheless at him.

"Hello, Junior." she told him, sitting behind her desk. She looked exhausted. Her hand was placed over her phone, as if she were just about to call someone before he walked in.

Baatar cringed slightly at the nickname. He’s had it since he was a child. It always bothered him, though. He wasn’t a kid anymore. Sometimes he wants to speak up and tell her to call him Baatar, but he knows that’ll only hurt her feelings. So he kept his mouth shut for now.

"Can I talked to you about something?" he still stood by the door, even though it was closed now.

His mother nodded, standing up. She looked more worried. "Of course."

Baatar shifted on his feet, putting his hands behind his back. Sometimes his mother made him nervous. "I was thinking about staying in Republic City a little longer? I want to make sure everything works out smoothly with our joining with Future Industries."

His mother let out a small sigh. "I don’t know . . ." she grabbed the phone. "Let me talk to Kuvira to see how things are doing. I’ll tell you my answer in the morning." she eyed him. "Take a shower and go to bed, Junior. You look awful." she gave him a small, teasing smile.

Baatar nodded his head, walking out of her office. Maybe it was time for him to call Kuvira, too.

______________________

"Kai, _shh_!" Jinora put her arms around his neck, her fingers going to his lips.

" _What_? _You_ ’ _re_ the one talking!" he whispered, but let out a small laugh as her arms tightened around his neck.

Jinora plopped off his back, gently landing on the ground next to him. She grabbed his hand, lacing their fingers together. "If my father catches us—"

Kai stopped her from talking with a quick kiss to her lips. She melted into it, her hands grabbing at the front of his shirt. He stared down at her when they broke the kiss. "We’ve done this over a hundred times— I think we mastered sneaking around." he began walking towards her room again. "But maybe if you _told_ your father about us, we wouldn’t have to keep doing this."

Jinora snorted. "Yeah, that would totally go down well: _Uh_ , _hey dad_ , _I just wanted to tell you that Kai and I are dating_. _We_ ’ _ve_ _been together for a year now_ , _actually_. _Okay_ , _good chatting_." she rolled her eyes, leaning her head towards him, kissing his cheek. "I love you, Kai, but I like that we don’t have to deal with any . . . _drama_."

Kai shook his head, but was chuckling despite his best effort not too. "I do, too, Jinora. But what about the future?" he stopped walking when they were close to her room. He wore a serious expression. "I love you, Jinora. I want to spend my future with you. We can’t do that if we keep this a secret."

Jinora sighed lightly, touching his cheek. "We would tell him by then—"

"And have him hate me." Kai rolled his eyes, entering her room with Jinora following behind him. "We’re telling him tomorrow, Jinora." he sat as he sat down on her bed.

Jinora stood in front of him, folding her arms over her chest. She immediately began panicking. "Butwhatifhedoesn’tacceptyouoruswhatthen?" she said so quickly, Kai raised an eyebrow, clearly haven’t gotten not one word of that. Jinora inhaled deeply. "What if he doesn’t accept us?"

Kai gave her a bright crooked grin. "C’mon, Jinora. He knows me well enough by now to like me." but he didn’t sound too convincing. Sure, Tenzin liked him, but Kai doubted he’d like him dating his eldest daughter. Kai shrugged his shoulders, grabbing Jinora’s hands. "Come on, let’s enjoy our night together. It might be out last." he teased.

Jinora smacked his shoulder, but smiled despite the panic building in her stomach. "You tease about it now." she climbed onto his lap, kissing him hungrily. There was something different about the atmosphere between them, tonight. Maybe Kai’s teasing did hit too close to home for them.

_____________________

Bolin just finished brushing his teeth, walking into his shared room with Opal. She was sitting up in their bed, reading an old air bending scroll. She looked absolutely beautiful sitting there. Bolin could stare at her like this for hours. He was sure he couldn’t be more in love with Opal than he already was, but everyday proved him wrong. She was the best thing that happened to him.

He climbed in to bed next to Opal, giving her a kiss on the cheek. "You’re so beautiful." he told her proudly smiling.

Opal blushed, even though she hears this every single day. She put the book down, staring over at him. She ran her fingers through his hair. "I love you."

Bolin rested his head in her lap. He could easily fall asleep right now if he wanted too. He felt so comfortable. Opal ran one hand through his hair, as she used the other one to hold up the scroll. She sighed lightly, setting the scroll down on their side table.

"Did you call Mako earlier today when I told you too?" she asked.

Bolin’s eyes shot up. He groaned, closing them again. "I completely forgot. With taking over Probending and getting the arena ready for the new season, I couldn’t make the time."

"He’s your brother. You always make time for family."

"He’ll come tomorrow for dinner, okay?" Bolin shifted, so that he could look up at Opal. "Your family is coming down on Wednesay? Will they be staying with us?"

Opal snorted. "In our one bed room apartment? I don’t think so. Tenzin already agreed they could stay on Air Temple Island, so long my younger brother’s don’t try to destroy it again." Opal gave him a teasing smile. "So if you want to play any earthbending games with them, you take it to your arena."

Bolin laughed. "We fixed everything right away! Why won’t anyone let it go!"

"Because _you_ nearly boiled down the entire island!" Opal laughed, leaning down to kiss him.

"I promise to behave myself." he said, raising his right hand to her.

"Come here," she pulled him up by his white tank top. She locked her arms around his neck when he sat up. She gently pressed her lips to his.

Bolin suddenly felt awake. He grabbed Opal, pulling her on top on him. She let out a small laugh at the movement. "Maybe you and I can play a few games ourselves . . ." he gave her a wink.

Opal laughed again when he pressed her back against their bed, kissing her down her neck.

__________________

Kuvira jolted awake when her phone began ringing. Her face was pressed into her pillow. She groaned, squinting her eyes in the darkness of her room, trying to find her phone. She pushed herself off her bed, seeing it in the corner of her room, resting on her police uniform. She glanced at the clock before answering. It was ten at night. She sighed, answering the unexpected call from Su.

"Is everything okay, Su?" Kuvira immediately asked. Su and her usually only talked on Sunday, unless it was an emergency or important.

"I can ask you the same thing." Su told her. Kuvira could picture her wearing a scowl and folding her arms over her chest.

Kuvira sighed, sitting back down at the edge of her bed. "Everything is fine, Su." she yawned. "I was actually just catching up on must needed sleep." she emphasized on the last part of her sentence, so that Su could end this conversation early. Kuvira wasn’t lying. She really needed sleep.

"Fine, don’t tell me what’s been going on. I’ll be finding everything out I need to know when I come on Wednesday."

Kuvira’s eyes widen slightly, excitement bubbling in her stomach. "Really? How long are you staying? Who’s coming with you?" Kuvira missed home. She missed Su and the BeiFongs.

Su laughed lightly through the phone. "I’m bringing the whole clan." she said teasingly. "Do you mind if Junior stays with you? He wants to stay in Republic City for a little while to over see things with Future Industries."

Kuvira’s excitement turned to anxiousness. "Uh, of course Su." she said with small hesitation. She didn’t mind having Baatar stay with her, but with their _interesting_ past, it’ll make for one hell of an awkward stay.

"He suggested to staying with Bolin and Opal, but that’s nonsense. You two have always gotten along well! Besides, you’ll enjoy the company." there was a hidden agenda with Su. Kuvira knew she was doing this for other reasons.

Kuvira rolled her eyes, but smiled. "Alright Su, whatever you say."

"You know, Kuvira—"

Kuvira room shook lightly. She shot up from her bed, going straight to her window. She saw the glow of fire coming from a building downtown. She put the phone back to her ear. "Su, I’ll call you back." she said before hanging up.

Kuvira began stripping herself of her clothing she was wearing, metalbending her police uniform on. She was pulling her shoes on her feet on her way out of her apartment. She metalbent the lock, running outside. Kuvira immediately got into her car, already hearing orders from Lin to report downtown. There was a bombing at a club. Kuvira’s phone began ringing. She answered it without even looking to see who was calling.

" _Where the fuck is Korra_?" she heard Lin growl.

Kuvira frowned. How did Lin know Korra wasn’t with her. "She’ll be there, Chief." Kuvira assured her.

"I’m already here. Get your ass down here." Lin said before she hung up.

Kuvira couldn’t drive faster even if her car allowed her too. She skidded to a halt when she reached the club. Waterbenders were already beginning to put the fire out. She saw people being carried out of the club. She saw more ambulances at the scene than she ever has seen in her entire career. _This was bad_.

Kuvira ran over to Lin, who was ordering people around. She looked around, seeing many people laying in the floor. They all looked dead. Some were missing limbs, other’s were hardly recognized as humans anymore. She wanted to throw up, but pushed the feeling down. Kuvira heard screaming coming from inside of the club. Without another second of hesitation, and despite Lin calling after her, she raced into the club.

The smoke and smell was overwhelming. She put her arm to her face, covering her mouth as she tried listening to where the sound the screaming was coming from. She heard bottles of what she assumed was alcohol bursting, making the fire near the bar rage uncontrollably. She heard the screaming coming from the other side of the club, near the tables.

Kuvira ran towards it, carefully earthbending fallen down walls and pillars out of her way as she reached the screaming. She leaned down, seeing a young girl, probably in her early adulthood, beneath a broken table. Kuvira immediately began assessing her. She looked fine, as long as you didn’t look at her legs. They both were crushed. One was covered in blood.

"Don’t move, I’m going to get you out of here." Kuvira told her, trying to see where to start without hurting the girl.

"I’m scared!" the girl cried. "I can’t feel my legs."

Kuvira swallowed loudly. That wasn’t a good sign. "My name is Kuvira. I’m a police officer. I’m going to get you out of here." was the only thing she could say.

The girl began sobbing harder as Kuvira tried to gently pry the fallen table and rubble that was crushing her. She didn’t use her earthbending. She was worried one wrong move would injure her even more so, or worst, kill her. She had to be very careful. This would be a good time for Korra to rush in here and help her out.

Kuvira removed a few pieces, everything seeming to go smoothly. She had a few more pieces to remove before the girl was completely free. With every movement Kuvira made, the girl would scream louder in pain. Kuvira grinded her teeth together, trying her best to ignore the girl. She wouldn’t be in pain long. Once Kuvira got her free, she’ll take her to the nearest ambulance. They’ll take care of her from there.

Kuvira heard the faint sound of something beeping. She looked around, trying to drown the girl’s sobbing to get a better listen. _What the hell_? Kuvira’s eyes immediately widen. _Fuck_! She thought. Using earthbending, she freed the girl, picking her up in her arms. Kuvira sprinted out of the building, yelling that there’s another bomb. Everyone who heard her, ran with her away from the building.

Within seconds of Kuvira’s warning, another bomb went off, completely shattering what was left of the club. Everyone near flew from the impact of the explosion, including Kuvira and the girl in her arms. She landed on the street with a thud, scrapping against it.

______________________

"Chief, where’s Kuvira!" Korra yelled as she sprinted over to Lin.

Lin looked paler than usual as she looked at Korra. "She was in the building!" she and the rest of the officers who weren’t impacted by the explosion quickly ran towards the rumble, grabbing anyone who they could spot.

Korra ran around the ruble, shouting Kuvira’s name. She should’ve gotten herself here earlier— what was she thinking? She got the call later, having missed the first two calls. She was taking a shower with Asami . . . She didn’t hear her phone. But once she got the call, she rushed over here as quickly as she could. But she was too late.

She kicked herself, helping anyone she saw. She kept calling out Kuvira’s name as she did so. If she were in the building like Lin said, that only meant one thing. Korra wouldn’t even allow herself to think about the outcome. She helped two people to the nearest ambulance, going back towards the club to find Kuvira.

"Kuvira!" she shouted, groaning when she didn’t hear an answer. _Come on dumbass_ , _answer me_. Korra could feel herself shaking when she saw a girl. She ran over to her, kneeling over. Her legs were in bad shape. The rest of her was too. But she was still breathing. "Alright, I’m here." Korra said as she gently picked her up.

Normally, she wouldn’t move someone who was this badly injured, to prevent more injuries, but Korra didn’t have much options. She ran as gently as she could towards an ambulance, despite the girl’s protests.

"Where’s the other woman?" the girl groaned.

Korra frowned down at her. "I don’t know, but we’ll find her."

"She needs help." she said, coughing up blood.

Korra handed her over to the nearest ambulance, running back over to where she was. If a girl was with her, she must’ve been over where the girl was. Korra’s eyes frantically searched the area, not seeing anyone at first. That was until she heard someone groaning. She ran over, seeing Kuvira laying on the street. She sighed with relief, kneeling beside her. Kuvira was behind a blockade of earth. She looked in bad shape, but not enough to cause too much worry.

"Look who finally showed up." Kuvira muttered, groaning as she began pushing herself off of the ground.

Korra rolled her eyes. "You’re a grouch as always. Guess you’re okay, then." but she still helped her to her feet. "What happened?"

Kuvira’s eyes searched around her. "Where’s that girl?"

"Is she the one with crushed legs?" Kuvira nodded. "She’s probably headed to the hospital already." Korra put her arm around Kuvira, as Kuvira and her began limping next to her. She held her stomach.

Kuvira groaned. "Fucking ass . . . Who would bomb . . . This shit is insane, Korra. _Who would do this_?"

Korra held her closer. "We’ll figure it out, Kuvira. Let’s just go get you some help, okay?"

* * *

"How in trouble are you with Lin for being late?" Kuvira asked as she took a long drink of her coffee. Her and Korra were in a hospital room. Kuvira dislocated her shoulder, brusied a few ribs, and received a cut in her abdomen that deserved a couple of stitches— but other than that, she was okay.

Korra was leaning against a wall with her arms across her chest. "I’ll survive. She wasn’t so mad when I spoke to her. I think it’s because she’s really swamped with trying to figure out who bombed the club." Korra sighed, shaking her head. "I guess asking for this Friday off is out of the question."

Kuvira arched an eyebrow. "Why would you need Friday off anyway?"

Korra gave her a small grin. "It’s mine and Asami’s two year anniversary." she inhaled deeply. "I have a whole evening planned— dinner, movie, walk through the park. I even bought a few toys—"

"Please stop before I throw up." Kuvira groaned.

Korra laughed, shaking her head. "Anyway, it’s out of the question now. I guess we’ll have to celebrate on another day, like we did last year."

Kuvira shook her head. "No, I’ll talk to Lin. You and Asami deserve a day to yourself."

Korra’s blue eyes lightened. "Aw, really? Thanks, Kuvira! And here I thought you were anti-romantic."

Kuvira rolled her eyes. "Don’t push it, avatar."

"No, seriously, I was worried. Ever since I met you you’ve never had a boyfriend, or a girlfriend. Except if you count that one guy you slept with here and there, but that wasn’t a relationship—"

"Please stop talking before I change my mind about talking to Lin." Kuvira took another drink. "Besides, I’m too busy for romance. And all the people I meet never quite give me that special, _you_ ’ _re_ _worth it_ , feeling." she shrugged her shoulders, wincing slightly. "I like being alone."

Korra sagged her shoulders slightly. "You’re definitely right about the busy part. Sometimes it’s a lot of work for Asami and I to be together." she sighed, but smiled. "Ready to go?"

Kuvira nodded her head. "Yeah, let me go sign the discharge papers."

___________________________

Tuesday October 8th

"Who were they targeting?" Su said over the phone to Lin.

Lin sighed, shaking her head. "We’ve been having some rallies lately. Non-benders verbally abusing benders. I have a feeling these two connect."

"That’s pretty extreme to bomb a place, killing— how many were killed?"

"Fifty people." Lin muttered, rubbing one of her temples.

" _Fifty people_ , Lin. If the bombing was caused by these protesters, you’ve got a bigger problem to deal with. _We_ all do."

Mako knocked on the door, entering with the file Lin wanted from him. After the bombing, she immediately told Mako to look into it. She was glad he may have found something. She held a finger to him as she waited for her sister to finish speaking.

"Alright Su, I have to go. I’ll see you on Wednesday." she hung up, holding her hand out for the files. Mako handed them to her. "What did you get, kid?" she asks as she began reading through them.

"Witnesses said they saw these group of people leaving the club before the bombing." he put a few pieces of paper on her desk of sketches.

Lin looked at them. They were people wearing masks. They definitely were the cause of the bombing. She knew that much. But with their faces covered, there wasn’t much she could do at the moment. She looked up from Mako. "This is good. What else did you get?"

Mako handed her a flier. "There is an underground rally going to happen tonight. The only way for people to go, is if they have an invitation." he sighed heavily, looking exhausted. "It’s that Amon guy, Chief. I _know_ he’s behind all of this."

Lin nodded her head, agreeing with him. "Alright. Find three fliers. And go send Kuvira and Korra in on your way out." Lin rubbed her eyes. She was on the brink of a headache.

Mako nodded, walking out. Not a minute later, Kuvira and Korra came into their office. Lin looked over to Kuvira sympathetically. She wore her left arm in a sling. She had bruises on her face, and blood staining the outside of her shirt. She looks well, though. Lin knew she was always strong. Her and Korra both.

"I’ve got a small task for the two of you if you’re up for it." Lin almost debated on not sending Kuvira. She was injured, but maybe that would be a good disguise. "You two up to go to a rally?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Glad you guys are enjoying this, so am I.


	3. Equality My Ass

Tuesday October 8th

"Kai!" Jinora pushed him, accidentally pushing him off of her bed. He shot up from the ground, his eyes wide with surprise. She covered her mouth, suppressing a laugh. She did feel guilty.

Kai frowned, rubbing the nape of his neck. "What was that for?" he groaned as he began climbing back into bed with her.

Jinora put her hands on his chest, forcing him to stop moving. She was standing in front of him now, the back of her legs pressed against her bed. "No, Kai. You have to go back to the boys dorm." she told him, sighing when he pouted.

"C’mon, I thought today was the special day." he put his hands on her hips, leaning into kiss her.

Jinora put her hands on his chest, gently pushing him away. She smiled at him. " _It is_. But I don’t think I want my father finding out we’re together by finding us together in bed." she gave him a quick peck on the lips before spinning him around, nearly pushing him out of her room.

He paused by her open door, turning around quickly, grabbing her in his arms. Kai but the biggest kiss on her lips. Jinora’s head spun. She wanted so desperately to pull him back in her room and cuddle with him again. She enjoyed sleeping with him— literal sleeping. As much as she wanted to be physical with him, she wanted to be completely open with their relationship first.

"Now, go before—"

"Kai? What on earth are you—" Tenzin stopped talking when he saw Jinora still wrapped in Kai’s arms. Her eyes went wide. But not as wide as his eyes. "JINORA! WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS?" he shouted. He definitely woke up the entire island— maybe all of Republic City as well.

Jinora swallowed loudly, her face feeling hot. "Dad— It’s _not_ what it looks like." she immediately began, trying to be calm. She didn’t feel calm, though.

Kai stepped forward, between Tenzin and Jinora. "Master Tenzin, we’re sorry you caught us like this. Jinora and I were going to tell you about our relationship—"

" _Relationship_?" Tenzin wasn’t screaming anymore, but his face was still a bright red. He stared at Jinora behind Kai. "Jinora, you’re dating Kai?" he sounded disappointed. Not because she was dating Kai, but because she hated confided in him about it. He thought they could talk about anything.

Jinora stepped forward now. "Between helping the other airbenders, and trying to learn more about airbending, I didn’t think you’d approve of me giving some of my extra time to Kai." she sighed heavily, sagging slightly. "I am _so_ sorry, dad." she said in a soft, broken voice.

For a long moment, Tenzin didn’t say anything. Jinora just stood there, with Kai behind her, staring at the ground. She now knew why it was better to not keep things like this a secret. She should’ve listened to Kai and told Tenzin earlier. Seeing his reaction to it now, she felt insanely guilty. She didn’t want to feel guilty for being in a relationship with Kai. She was an adult now, even though she was just eighteen. She wanted to make her own decisions.

She kept Kai’s hand ghosting around her own. They never touched. That wouldn’t be the best decision with Tenzin standing in front of them. But Jinora wasn’t ashamed of her relationship with Kai. No matter what her father thought about them.

She inhaled deeply, standing up straight. She laced her fingers with Kai, glancing behind her shoulder at him, giving him a small smile. He looked extremely nervous, but he returned her smile. Jinora looked back at her father. His face wasn’t red anymore. He didn’t look angry.

"Dad?" her voice was stronger than it was moments ago.

Tenzin sighed lightly. "How long have you two been dating?"

"A year now."

Tenzin’s eyes widen slightly at that. "Oh my." he inhaled deeply, staring back at Kai. "You’re not allowed over here, Kai. That’s an order."

"Dad—" Jinora began to protest but was interrupted by Tenzin.

"Give me time to wrap my head around this, Jinora. You’re still my little girl in my eyes." he gave her a small smile, though it didn’t reach her eyes. "Kai not allowed over here is a rule for everyone." he frowned slightly, his mind probably going to the wrong assumption of why Kai was here early in the morning.

Kai nodded his head, getting out of there as quickly as he could. He glanced back at Jinora when he was out of Tenzin’s sight, giving her a small wave. She sighed lightly. This was going to be a long day.

_______________________

"I was almost insulted when she asked. Like we would refuse an opportunity like that." Korra rolled her eyes. "Well, maybe _you_ should, but not me."

Kuvira shrugged her good shoulder. "Maybe I shouldn’t go. It’s not like I’m in the best condition to fight right now."

Korra arched an eyebrow at her. "Why do you always think we’re going to get into a fight? We’re not even supposed to be noticed tonight."

"But what if we are? Then we have to fight our way out." she shook her head. "I’m just always prepared, avatar." she grinned over at Korra. "Have you talked to Lin about getting Friday off? You know you can’t ask for it _on_ Friday." she nudged her lightly.

Korra’s face turned sour. "I wasn’t going to wait until Friday. Actually, I was thinking about asking her after tonight. Hopefully it all goes out, so she’s in a good mood. And you’ll be there, and she likes you. If it doesn’t work out with me, you’ll intervene and talk to her for me."

Kuvira laughed, shaking her head at Korra. She was about to comment, saying how Korra is the master of all four elements, the strongest person in the entire world, but she’s terrified of Lin, but her phone began ringing instead. Kuvira pushed herself off of her couch, groaning slightly at the strain she was feeling in her abdomen at the movement. She inhaled lightly, picking up her phone.

"Hello?" she asked, not even bothering to look who was calling.

"Kuvira? Hey, this is Baatar."

His voice hit her hard. Kuvira instantly felt like sitting down. She stared at Korra, who just gave her a weird expression. Korra mouthed ‘who is it’ but Kuvira just shook her head, going into her bedroom. She sat down at the end of her bed. She hasn’t spoken to Baatar for over a year. They both were so busy— it never crossed Kuvira’s mind to ever call him. One, she heard all she needed from her weekly phone calls to Su. Two, she and Baatar had a very _interesting_ past with one another. A random call like this wasn’t something they both were comfortable ever doing. Kuvira wondered if maybe something were wrong, and that’s why he’s calling her.

"Is everything okay, Baatar?" she asked him immediately.

She heard him chuckle lightly through the phone. "Everything is fine, Kuvira. You worry too much just like my mother." he teased.

Kuvira shook her head, but smiled. "Why are you calling then?"

"Ouch, that was rude, Kuvira."

She rolled her eyes, but was still smiling. "That’s not what I meant, Baatar."

"I called to ask if it was really okay for me to stay with you? Mom said it was fine, but she has a way of thinking everyone will bend at her will no matter what. It’ll be for a few weeks, until I can find my own place."

Kuvira’s eyes widened. "You’re moving to Republic City?" deep inside her, she was feeling excitement bubble. It would be great to have another familiar face around, other than Opal, who she rarely even saw these days.

"It’s still up in the air, but most likely. BB Industries and Future Industries have joined together. I’d like to at least stay out there long enough to make sure the joining of our companies work out well." he sighed lightly. "Besides, you know how I’ve always wanted to break away from Zaofu and start working on my own."

Kuvira nodded her head, even though he couldn’t see her. She had known he wanted to do that. It was his dream to leave Zaofu and work on his own. When she left, she told him that he needed to stand up to his family and begin living his life the way he wanted too. She was glad to finally be hearing him say these words, but she’ll be even happier to see him put these words to actions.

"You can stay as long as you want." she looked around at the mess of her room. The outside was even worst. "Though, I’m not home as often to clean up the place."

"A mess doesn’t bother me. Thank you, Kuvira. I owe you."

"No, you don’t." she sighed. "You don’t mind sleeping on the couch for a little, right? I have an extra bedroom, but no bed in it. Just a lot of junk. I’ll clean it out—"

"It’s fine, Kuvira. The couch will be perfect for the meantime." he said, laughing.

She sat there in silent. None of them said anything, but Kuvira didn’t want to hang up on him. She hadn’t realized how much she missed talking to him. She felt like she could talk to him for hours. When they grew up together, that’s exactly what they used to do. Always talking. He was the second person she could trust after her parent’s abandoned her. He was also the only person who she told about all of that stuff. Not even Su knew it all.

Kuvira could hear Korra calling for her. Kuvira bit her bottom lip. She inhaled lightly. "So, I guess I should go . . ." she didn’t sound so convincing.

"Oh, okay. I’ll see you tomorrow."

She hung up, taking another deep breath. She walked out of her room, seeing Korra sprawled out on her couch, flipping through the channels. Kuvira frowned over at her, putting her hands to her hips.

"This is your last day off, don’t you want to spend it with Asami?"

"When she found out I would be working tonight, she decided to go to work so that I could ‘rest’." Korra rolled her eyes. "That work-oholic couldn’t stay a day away from her work." she muttered as she shook her head.

Kuvira laughed as she pushed Korra’s legs off the end of the couch, sitting down. "Trouble in paradise?"

Korra snorted. "Ha, ha." she stuck her tongue out at Kuvira. "Asami and I are doing just fine, if you truly want to know. Though I don’t think that move we tried in the shower—"

"Korra! Why do you always assume I’m curious about your sex life?"

"I don’t think you’re curious. I just want to talk about it. You know? Bond with you. If you don’t know what bonding is, it’s when two people—"

Kuvira threw a pillow at her, hitting her face. "Shut up before I kick you out."

Korra shrugged her shoulders, looking back over at the tv. "So, who was that on the phone? You looked like a mixture of a giddy school girl and someone who was about to throw up." Korra grinned at her.

Kuvira slumped into the couch. "It was Baatar Beifong."

"Opal’s older brother or her father?" she asked with an eyebrow raised.

Kuvira shook her head, frowning slightly at Korra for even assuming it was Baatar Sr. "No, Opal’s older brother. He’s coming tomorrow with Su and Baatar Sr."

Korra smiled, giving her a strange look. "Oh, this is going to be fun." she groaned. "Did Opal invite you to dinner tonight?"

Kuvira nodded her head. "And I’m going. I need a nice home cooked meal." she gently patted her stomach, avoiding her stitches.

___________________________

Asami was sketching something when she heard the knock on her door. She let out a sound, hoping it was audible to the person. She was too distracted in what she was doing to stop and tell them to come in. The person opened her door. It was her father. She gave her a warm smile, his eyes crinkling. She stopped what she was doing, returning his smile.

"Hey dad."

"I have to attend a conference this Friday, will you come with me? It’s an important one, and I think it would be good practice for you."

Asami’s eyebrows pushed together slightly. "Friday is my anniversary with Korra . . ." she stopped speaking when she saw the light in his face fade. He hated Korra. She inhaled deeply. "I suppose I could attend, if it’s that important. Where it is?"

"All the way in Ba Sing Se. We’ll be gone the entire weekend."

Asami nodded her head. Even though she didn’t want to reschedule her anniversary with Korra, she knew Korra had to work anyway. This was important for her. Asami would one day be where her father is, and she needed to be prepared to take care of it as well as he does.

"I’ll come. Korra will understand." she said with a small smile. She rubbed her forehead. "Did you hear about the explosion downtown? Four Elements has reached out to ask us for help on rebuilding their night club." Asami made a face at the name. It was stupid, but what happened to the club was absolutely horrifying. She would love to reach out a helping hand to them.

Hiroshi crossed his arms over his chest. "I don’t know, Asami. They’re not technically a particular business we associate ourselves with."

Asami’s lips pressed together. "True, but they’re willing to pay any amount." she knew this might have something to do with the fact that this club is owned by benders, and most of their business is benders. Her father didn’t particularly like benders ever since her mother was killed by a firebender many years ago . . .

"I’ll think about it." he finally said. "Let me handle that business from here on out." he told her, before walking out of her office.

Asami sighed heavily, grabbing the picture of her mother she keeps on her desk. It’s times like these, when she feels a strain between her and her father’s relationship that she wants her mother to be here. She always wanted her mother to still be alive. Her mother would be easier to talk too. About Korra, about . . . anything. She wished she had that relationship with her father, but it was impossible. Especially since she’s dating the avatar. There was a rift between there relationship, no matter how many times they both would deny it.

__________________________

Mako had been able to get three invitations for Lin, Kuvira, and Korra. It was easy, actually. Too easy. The location was the hard part. It didn’t say anything on the flier where this underground rally was located. He felt stupid for not knowing. It was his job as a detective to figure stuff like this out. He didn’t want to hand these to Lin without knowing where the damn thing is located. She would surely kill him for being such an awful detective.

He huffed, slumping in his chair. He closed his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose. He had to figure this out soon. Tonight was the rally, and the day was already coming to a close. He glanced at his watch. He might have to cancel on dinner with Bolin and Opal, something he really didn’t want to do. But work sometimes had to be his first priority.

Mako turned the fliers over and over in his hands, figuring if he stared at them long enough, he would be able to figure out where the location was. Of course, he could always talk to the non-benders who gave him the flier, asking them where the rally is. But he didn’t want to seem as suspicious as he probably already looked wearing the sunglasses and scarf to his nose.

Korra and Kuvira came walking towards him, carrying a brown bag that smelled like fried foods. Mako’s mouth watered. Korra leaned against his desk, throwing the bag in front of him. She knew him too well to know he skipped lunch today. He nodded his head once at Kuvira, who looked decently okay for someone who was nearly blown up. She had bruises on the side of her face, her bottom lip was also busted. Her arm was still in a sling from dislocating her shoulder. She had to see a healer for that one, and also her abdomen wound, but she’s looking better everyday. He was glad she was alive. Things could’ve turned out worst.

"How long do you have to keep your arm in that?" Mako asked her.

"Three more days." Korra answered for her.

Kuvira rolled her eyes. "I’m taking my arm out of it tomorrow. The last thing I want Su to see is me all broken." she sighed.

"If you take it out, you’ll just damage it even more. You know that." Korra shook her head, but there was guilt noticeable in her eyes. She looked back over at Mako, grabbing one of the fliers off his desk. "You got them? Cool." she grinned as she read the flier.

" _Not cool_." Mako huffed. "I don’t even know where the damn thing is located."

Kuvira grabbed the other flier off his desk, turning it over. She arched an eyebrow, grabbing Korra’s. She smiled. "There’s a map on the back."

Mako and Korra both looked at her with confusion. "How do you know?"

Kuvira walked over to map of Republic City on the wall behind Mako. She placed the back of the flier against the map, moving it to where it connected just like a puzzle piece. She turned back to both Korra and Mako staring at her with wide eyes. Mako felt like slapping himself. How did he, as a detective, not figure that out? But Kuvira, who is only a police officer, figured it out in under one minute. Incredible.

"Excellent!" Mako shot up from his seat, grabbing the last flier, practically running towards Lin’s office. He bursted in, holding the flier out to her. He didn’t even flinch at her glare. "Here, Chief. You, Korra, and Kuvira are all set for tonight. It begins at nine in the Red Light District."

Lin’s eyebrows pushed together as she wore her usual scowl. "The Red Light District?" it was a decently okay part of town. Not many bad things happen, but it’s not exactly filled with a lot of good people. It’s a very scandalous district. Most businesses over there are actually run by non-benders, so it would make sense why they would have their rally there. "Okay, good job." she told him.

Mako nodded, pleased with himself. Of course, it was Kuvira who figured out the location. He walked out of her office, shoving his hands in his pocket as he slowly walked back over to his desk. He felt calmer, less stressed. Now he could attend dinner with Bolin and Opal.

__________________________

"I was trying to get Friday off, you know. And it’s not easy asking Lin for something like that, but at least _I_ was giving the effort to spend time with you."

"You think I _want_ to miss our anniversary?" Asami sounded insulted.

Korra shrugged her shoulders. "I don’t know. You’re father hates me. Of _course_ he would make you go on a business trip the whole weekend." she shook her head.

Asami sat down in front of her on their bed. "Korra, he may not like you, but he wouldn’t just pull me away if it wasn’t truly important." but she didn’t sound too convincing.

Korra rolled her eyes, not looking at her. "Whatever, I guess. At least I don’t have to ask Lin for Friday off anymore." Korra pouted. She _really_ wanted to spend the day with Asami. It was their two year anniversary. They couldn’t spend their first anniversary together, so she thought they both could make this one special. The fact that it won’t be spent together again really pisses her off.

Asami sighed, grabbing one of Korra’s hands in her own. "We can plan something on your next day off, when I get home." she put her hand under Korra’s chin, forcing her to look at her. "I love you, Korra. And I’m sorry about having to leave this Friday."

Korra was still upset, but she leaned into Asami’s touch. "Come here." she grabbed Asami, pulling her on top of her so now Asami was straddling her. Korra wrapped her arms around her waist. "I love you, too. I’m just a little bummed. I’ll get over it."

Asami arched an eyebrow. "Korra, getting over something?" she shook her head. "Unheard of. You’re so stubborn, you’re still holding the grudge over missing our anniversary last year." she was smiling as she spoke to Korra.

Korra narrowed her eyes at her, but was fighting a smile. "I do not." she pulled Asami down so that she could kiss her.

Asami grabbed a handful of Korra’s hair, deepening the kiss between them. Korra’s hands ran up her back, going under her shirt. Korra quickly glanced at the clock as Asami began kissing down her neck. She had time before they had to go to dinner with Bolin and Opal. Asami removed her shirt, tugging at Korra’s when she threw her’s on the ground. Korra raised her arms, kissing Asami’s chest as her shirt was being removed. Shivers went through Korra’s body as Asami lightly traced her fingers down Korra’s abdomen.

Korra flipped over, so that now Asami’s back was pressed against the bed, and Korra was hovering over her. She began kissing down Asami’s jaw and neck, going down her chest and stomach. Asami’s back arched. Korra grinned. She loved the affect she had on Asami. She glanced back at the time. Maybe they didn’t have enough time, now that she thought about it, but she was willing to miss the dinner. She was hungry for something else . . .

_______________________

Opal put the last plate on the round table in her and Bolin’s kitchen. Mako, Korra, Asami, and Kuvira were all expected to come over and eat. Mako was already here, watching the news with Bolin. They were talking about the bombing of Four Elements. Opal would know how awful that was. She and the other airbenders volunteered to help all the injured, and also help try to rebuild the place. It was sad to see what happened to those innocent people. She also enjoyed the club and was familiar with the owners.

There was a knock at the door. Opal rushed over to the door, opening it to find Kuvira holding a bottle of wine. She immediately took the bottle from her, giving her a gentle side hugged. Kuvira shut the door behind her, walking with Opal to the kitchen. She stared at tv the entire time, her eyes seeming to be far away for a moment. Opal grabbed her hand, giving it a light squeeze. Kuvira looked over at her, blinking rapidly. She gave her a small smile.

"You look good." Opal told her, putting the wine on the table with the rest of the food.

Kuvira had her long, dark hair pulled in a braid behind her back, a little bit of it handing out still, covering the bruises on that side of her face. She usually still wore traditional Zaofu clothing if she wasn’t wearing her police uniform, but tonight she had on black pants and a black long sleeve. She wore black boots, too. Her outfit did cause a little suspicion to Opal, because it looked like an outfit you wear when sneaking into something. But nonetheless, she looked good in it.

"It’s for the job." is all that Kuvira said. She glanced at the clock, arching an eyebrow. "Is Korra going to be late?"

"Your girlfriend will be here shortly, she just called five minutes ago." Opal said teasingly.

Kuvira folded her arms across her chest, leaning against one of the counters. "Are you excited to see your family?"

Opal’s eyes brightened. "Yes! I felt like forever since I last saw them. You excited too? We’ll have to have a big get together since we’re all together for once in a very long time!" she said excitedly.

Kuvira laughed. "Definitely. Baatar will be staying with me." she felt herself become slightly awkward mentioning it. Her cheeks felt warm. "You know, because he’s staying out in Republic City for a while . . ." she pouted at herself.

Opal laughed at her, clearly telling how awkward Kuvira became at the mention of her eldest brother. She was familiar with their past together. Baatar staying out for a while was news to Opal, though. Good news, nonetheless. "You two sure you can handle being alone with one another?" she teased as she placed the final plates of food on the table.

Kuvira’s face got even more red. "I don’t— that’s not really— Baatar and I are just friends, Opal." there was a knock at the door. Kuvira instantly looked thankful.

"Whatever you say, Kuvira." Opal teased as she walked to the door. "You two are lucky Bolin didn’t start eating without you." Opal said when she let Korra and Asami in.

"We were busy." Korra simply said, shrugging her shoulders. She had her hand intertwined with Asami’s. She gave Opal a quick kiss on the cheek. "Thanks for waiting on us, though, Op!" Korra looked at the food the same way Bolin is.

"Well, now that everyone is here, let’s get to eating!" Opal said as Korra and Bolin already began digging in. She rolled her eyes, but smiled, joining them at the dinner table.

______________________

"We do nothing, got it? Just take mental notes and keep in the shadows. No matter what we hear, don’t let it anger you. We can’t break cover. No matter what. Got it?" Lin warned the two of them. Both Kuvira and Korra nodded.

The three of them entered the rally, getting in easily. Lin wouldn’t have normally come to something like this. She would’ve let her other officers go for her, especially because she had a noticeable face. She had to go to the extreme just to look different, so that nobody would recognize her. Lin wanted to come and see things for herself. This was her city, and after the bombing killing fifty innocent people, all of them benders, she felt like this was a personal problem.

They squeezed closely together as they blended in with the crowd. There was a stage and a poster of Amon. Lin fought every urge in her body to roll her eyes. This is just getting ridiculous. Kuvira and Korra stood next to her, both of them scanning the room. They both looked a little uncomfortable. Lin would be lying if she didn’t feel uncomfortable as well. With all the shouting about how awful benders were . . .

Finally, the lights dimmed, only shining on the stage. Amon came out from the ground, wearing the mask as usual. Lin wanted to desperately remove the mask to see the person who was causing all of this. She looked at the people wearing masks behind him. They also wore a glove on one their hands. Lin eyed the glove suspiciously.

"My quest for equality began years ago, when I was a small boy. My family and I were attacked by _firebenders_. They took _everything_ away from me. They took my own family away from me, as well as my own face. I’ve been _forced_ to hide behind a mask ever since the incident happened. With the avatar around, she tries to force it upon us that bending brings _balance_ to the world,"

Lin saw Korra tense up next to her, her hands balled into fist. Lin nudged her lightly, making eye contact with her. _No matter what_. Lin urged as she stared at her.

"But she, and everyone else who believes that, are dead wrong. The only thing bending has ever brought is suffering and war. But that is about the change. You all may be wondering, what is the Revelation? All of your questions will be answered tonight. I was given a gift by the spirits, the same spirits who choose me to bring true balance to the world,"

Kuvira snorted, folding her arms across her chest. Lin grinded her teeth together. She looked around, seeing how invested these people were with what this lunatic was selling them. How could they not see he was feeding them a bunch of shit? He wasn’t given any gift from any spirit. The only person who had connections to the spirit world, is Korra. And still, it’s not something that’s easy to access. This man is just full of bullshit.

"I have the power to bring back equality! I have the power to remove someone’s bending. _Permanently_."

Kuvira, Lin, and Korra all tensed up. Kuvira and Korra glanced over at Lin, both of them looking at her like ‘ _is this man serious_ ’. Lin didn’t know what to do. Was he? Nobody could take someone’s bending away. It was impossible. Only the avatar could do that, but the only avatar who ever actually did it was Aang. This man couldn’t possibly possess such power . . .

Suddenly, seven people were led to the stage. Lin’s eyes widened. Those are the seven people reported missing. The benders. Their hands were tied behind their back, and their feet were also tied together. A guy wearing a mask, forced an elderly man to his knees in front of Amon. The elderly man was pleading for his life at this point, but Amon wasn’t listening. He didn’t care. He placed his index finger and thumb to the elderly man’s forehead, his other hand behind his head. Suddenly, the man dropped to the ground.

The man with a mask untied him. The elderly man shuffled weakly to his feet, clearly trying to firebend. Nothing. He stared at his hands, trying to do it again. His eyes widened and he began to shake. Amon began laughing.

"You no longer have your bending." he turned to the crowd. "Let this be the message: Equality is coming. Bending will no longer be a thing once I am threw with everyone."

To Lin, it felt like he was talking directly to her. She swallowed loudly, looking at both Kuvira and Korra, who stared horrified at the firebender on stage. She had a bigger problem on her hands than she thought.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The BeiFong's are coming! The BeiFong's are coming!
> 
> Also, Amon clearly needs to take a chill pill.
> 
> Hey, if you guys have any art or questions or anything about this story you want to give me or tell me, you can check out my tumblr blog: kuviraforevergirl (:


	4. I'll Make Things Right

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The title of the chapter sucks, I know. But guess what? I wrote a little teen-rated fluff scene between Korra and Asami to celebrate marriage equality throughout America today. I'm dancing the Carlton right now :D Enjoy.

Wednesday October 9th

"You’ve got the entire weekend to accomplish the plan." Hiroshi’s voice growled in the phone.

"You’ve got your people ready? They all know what they’re doing?" Amon sounded almost too eager, yet his voice remained leveled. He spoke with a seriousness in his tone.

"Of course. ‘Kill the avatar’. It’s a pretty clear message." Hiroshi rolled his eyes. It was hard to try to be in charge, when Amon clearly had more followers. He was the face of this all. Hiroshi only supplied the weapons and cars. But he had his own group of followers as well.

"This is going to be a great weekend."

Hiroshi smiled a cold smile. "Yes, it is. As long as nobody fucks it up."

____________________________

"What the _fuck_ , Lin? How did that happen? Why . . . we didn’t . . ." Kuvira shook her head, taking another shot. She was still shaking from what she saw. Seven benders got their bending taken away and she had no clue how. "We should’ve helped. It’s our job to help. We should’ve stopped—"

" _And what_ , get _our_ own bending taken away? We were outnumbered." Lin growled, clutching her drink. They’ve been drinking since they left. It was early morning now. But none of them felt drunk.

Kuvira sighed heavily, laying her head against Lin’s cool kitchen counter. "It’s not fair. This isn’t fair." she shook her head, glancing over at Korra who just stared at her drink. She hasn’t said a word since they left the rally.

Lin took Kuvira’s and Korra’s drink from their hands. Kuvira went to protest, but stopped when she saw the look on Lin’s face. "My sister is arriving in two hours. Go sober up and shower. I don’t want her to know about any of this."

Kuvira pushed off of her seat, nodding her head. Lin was right about not telling Su. She’ll just freak out and try to bring Kuvira back to Zaofu. Or she’ll bring the entire Zaofu army here, and that’ll just cause more problems. They didn’t need her help. Not yet, at least.

But Kuvira couldn’t just shake off what she saw. It was a horrifying sight, and she’s even seen mutilated bodies before. Seeing the terrified look in the eyes of the bendless benders was awful. She couldn’t get the look out of her head. It was burned into her mind.

She worried about Korra. Her happy, joking friend was now a silent person. Korra walked next to Kuvira as they left Lin’s apartment. Korra was staring at the ground. Kuvira didn’t even pretend to imagine what Korra might be feeling. She was the avatar. And even though she used her neutral attitude and balance to good use by becoming a police officer, she was still the avatar. People still depended on her. She still had another job to do. This Amon problem was big. Bigger than they wanted it to be. Kuvira put her arm around Korra’s shoulder.

"You okay there?" she tried to keep her tone light, but failed.

Korra didn’t say anything to her. Not until they were a few buildings down from where Lin lived. Korra sighed, looking like she hasn’t slept in years. "What am I supposed to do, Kuvira?" she sounded more serious than Kuvira has ever heard her sound.

Kuvira’s eyebrows push together. She placed a firm hand on Korra’s shoulder. "I don’t know, Korra. Whatever it is, though, you’ve got help." she gave her a reassuring smile. "We’re partners. Always."

Korra slightly smiled at that, but it didn’t quite reach her sapphire blue eyes. "Can I go back to your place? Asami is probably at work already . . . I want to take a shower before I go back to work. I have a spare change of clothes at your apartment still, right?"

Kuvira nodded her head, beginning to walk with Korra by her side. She didn’t live far from Lin. She was glad Korra was coming back with her. She was afraid to be alone right now. The rest of the walk was silent. When they got to Kuvira’s apartment, Korra went straight to her bathroom, shutting the door. Kuvira heard the shower turn on. She sighed heavily, knowing she should eat something. But she doesn’t really have the stomach for anything right now.

She knows she’s going to have to change her attitude before Su arrives. The last thing she wanted was Su worried about her. She already had to explain why her arm was in a sling and why she had bruises covering her face. But she doesn’t want to explain why she can’t eat. Or why she might have trouble sleeping for the next couple of nights.

This was the unfortunate part of her job. Seeing things that were unsettling. She’s seen a lot in her career, things that she’s just gotten used too. But seeing that . . . She’s never seen anyone’s bending being taken away. She heard stories of when Aang did it, but this was different. It made Kuvira fear for her own bending. What if they were caught? Kuvira shook away the thought.

Kuvira decided to force herself to eat something. She made another sandwich for Korra, incase she wanted to eat something when she got out of the shower. Korra walked out moments later, looking better than she just had. Her short cropped hair was pulled in a low ponytail. She was wearing a fresh police uniform, walking over towards Kuvira, eyeing the sandwich. Kuvira was glad to see her doing better.

"I’m going to take a shower." Kuvira told her as she picked up a few things off her apartment floor. She almost forgot Baatar would be staying with her. She sighed heavily, looking back at Korra who was smirking at her. Kuvira’s eyes narrowed at her. "What?"

Korra shrugged her shoulders. "You just look nervous. Is it because Baatar is staying with you?"

Kuvira frowned slightly. "Who told you that?" Kuvira knew it wasn’t her.

"Opal." Korra’s smile widened. "She told me your boyfriend was staying with you for awhile." she shrugged her shoulders again, taking a bite of her sandwich. "I’m just glad you’ll finally get laid. You’ve been so grumpy." she said with a mouthful of food.

Kuvira metalbent Korra to her counter, rolling her eyes. At least Korra’s spirits were back up.

________________________

Baatar nervously walked next to his mother as they both walked into the police station. The rest of his family stayed on Air Temple Island, knowing better than to ever bother Lin while she was working. But his mother didn’t fear Lin the way everyone else did. To her, she was just her older sister. Someone who irritated her at times, but someone she loved and trusted. Besides, Baatar knew his mother never listened to Lin’s orders.

"Shouldn’t we have just waited until we had dinner with her tonight— like she wanted?"

His mother let out a small laugh, waving his words off. "Nonsense, Junior. She’ll be thrilled to see us."

Baatar doubted that, but continued to walk next to his mother. The other officers in the station immediately waved to them, greeting them. They all knew who they were. But Baatar couldn’t help but notice the worry in their eyes as they walked towards Lin’s office. His mother knocked three times as she opened the door. Lin was sitting behind her desk, looking exhausted. She narrowed her eyes as she saw her sister, but the look faded. They both embraced each other. Lin patted Baatar’s shoulder.

"I’d be lying if I told you I wasn’t expecting you to show up here." Lin told Su. "Heard you’re staying out in Republic City for awhile, Junior?"

Baatar nodded his head. But his mother spoke before he could. "Just for a few weeks, Lin. Junior is needed more back at Zaofu than here." she smiled over to him.

Baatar turned around when he heard a familiar voice. Walking inside were Kuvira and the avatar. The sight of her set him back. He wasn’t expecting her to look— well, she looked bad. Not with looks, but she had bruises on her face, and her bottom lip was swollen. She also wore her arm in a sling. But other than her injuries, she looked beautiful. She was always beautiful. Her green eyes were bright. Her hair was braided down her back. She had a little of it hanging out. His breath hitched in his throat. He swallowed loudly, watching like dumbass as his mother walked over to her, embracing her.

"What the hell happened to you, Kuvira?" she immediately asked her, putting one hand on her good shoulder. She turned to Korra, giving her a small smile. "Nice to see you again, Korra." Korra said hello before walking to her desk.

Kuvira inhaled deeply. "It’s apart of the job." she shrugged her good shoulder, a small smile crawling on her lips. "Besides, this isn’t the worst injury I’ve ever had. Remember when I first became a guard?" both Su and her winced at the memory. "Hello, Baatar." she was staring at him now.

Baatar shook his head, his cheeks turning a bright red. He walked over to her, standing next to his mother. "You look good— _well_." he cleared his throat. How was he supposed to be living with her if he couldn’t even talk to her without sputtering? He felt like a kid again.

"Was the trip okay?" she asked, her eyes going back to Su.

Su sighed dramatically. " _Bearable_."

Kuvira laughed at that. Baatar smiled over at her. Her laugh, which was deep and husky like her voice, sounded like music to his ears. He would be lying if he said he didn’t miss her. Just her presence was enough for him. When Kuvira lived in Zaofu, they would talk all the time. Baatar could go to her and vent just about anything to her. She would always give him good advice. Sometimes they would just joke around with each other. He missed hearing her laugh. He missed a lot of things about her. Maybe living with her will make up for some lost time between them.

"You’re staring." Kuvira told him in a low voice as Su began speaking to Lin back in her office.

Baatar’s cheeks felt hot. He folded his arms behind his back. "So what _really_ happened to you?"

Kuvira’s lips formed a tight line. She sighed lightly, smirking up at him. "It was me vs. a bomb. I won." her smile widened, but it didn’t reach her eyes.

Baatar’s eyes widened. " _Bomb_? What?"

She shook her head. "Don’t tell Su." she warned. Baatar knew better than to ever do that. She nudged him lightly. "I’m glad you’re here. I’ve missed you . . . all." she frowned slightly at herself. Baatar quickly realized that to be the cutest expression he has ever seen on her.

Baatar chuckled lightly. "Same here. Mom wouldn’t stop talking about how excited she was to see you, Aunt Lin, and Opal. Nearly drove the twins mad. But we’ve all missed you guys."

Su was saying something to Lin as she walked outside her office, laughing. She walked over to Baatar and Kuvira, giving them both an interesting glance. "It’s so good to see you two together again. You’ve always made a cute couple."

Baatar wanted to immediately run and hide. He didn’t know if dying from embarrassment was a possible thing, but he felt like that was just about to happen to him. He dared a glance down at Kuvira who looked as embarrass as he felt. Su just smiled at them, letting out a small laugh, shaking her head.

"Come on, Junior. We’ll see them all later tonight for dinner."

Kuvira jumped up slightly, fishing something out of her pocket. She handed a key to Baatar. "This isn’t a spare. I haven’t gotten around to making you one yet. But you can just use mine. I can easily metalbend my way into my apartment."

Su frowned at Kuvira. "That’s not safe, Kuvira. Other metalbenders could get into your apartment."

"And do what? If I’m not home, the worst that’ll happen is they steal something. Not like I have much anyway." she smiled. "And if I’m home, they have to deal with me."

Su shook her head, but Baatar could see her fighting a smile. "See you tonight at Opal’s." she said as she and Baatar walked out of the police station. "Now we’ve got to meet you father at Future Industries. Maybe along the way we can pick something up for him. You know he’s a sucker for sweet rolls."

Baatar nodded his head, but he wasn’t really all there. He was still thinking about Kuvira, and how her laugh sounded. Or the way she looked when she was smiling. Or the expression she made when she frowned. Or the way she smelled— like something floral, sweet, and metal. Maybe staying with her might be a problem for their friendship . . .

___________________________

Jinora was meditating when she felt someone sit next to her. She knew automatically who what person was, feeling their energy. She opened her eyes to see Korra. She didn’t look so good. She had bags forming under her eyes, and her normally bright sapphire blue eyes were dull. Jinora frowned with concern, placing her hand on Korra’s leg.

"Is everything okay, Korra?" she could feel Korra’s energy swirling around in negativity. She knew Korra wasn’t okay. "What happened?"

Korra shook her head. "I just want to mediate, Jinora." her voice still sounded kind, despite the way she looked.

Jinora nodded her head. "Of course, Korra."

For the next fifteen minutes, all they did was mediate. Jinora didn’t try to push anything out of Korra. Korra didn’t say a word to her. They both just sat down next to each other, meditating. Jinora kept her energy calm and positive, pushing it over to Korra. She’s read enough books on how powerful the art of mediation could be. Finally, she heard Korra sigh. She opened one eye, seeing that Korra has given up on meditating. She opened both eyes, looking over at Korra. Before she could say anything, though, Korra spoke up.

"How are you and Kai doing? Tenzin called and said something about finding Kai in your room." she arched an eyebrow.

Jinora immediately felt her cheeks warm. " _Nothing_ was going on! I just like sleeping with Kai sometimes." she frowned immediately at the sound of that. "Actual sleeping, Korra."

Korra laughed, actually looking more like her normal self. "Don’t worry, Jinora. I didn’t expect anything else. Though, did you know Tenzin caught Asami and I in bed together one time? And we weren’t sleeping."

Jinora’s eyes widened as began laughing. "That must’ve been awful!"

Korra nodded her head, cringing slightly. "Let’s just say I couldn’t touch Asami for an entire month without picturing the look on Tenzin’s face." she shuddered.

Jinora laughed so hard, her stomach began hurting. She wiped her eyes. "Well, nothing like that happened, thank the spirits." she sighed. "Kai and I were planning to tell him the right way. I never wanted him to catch us. I should’ve never kept my relationship a secret from him."

Korra placed her hand on her shoulder. "He isn’t angry or disappointed with you, Jinora. Don’t feel guilty about your relationship with Kai."

Jinora nodded her head, twisting her fingers together. "Was it difficult for you? Telling your parent’s about dating Asami?"

Korra shook her head. "They love Asami, so it was the best news they’ve heard when I said her and I were dating." Korra sighed. "But it is _difficult_ to have Asami’s father hate my guts."

Jinora made a face. "Does he really hate you? Even after two years?"

Korra nodded her head, but shrugged her shoulders. "At this point, I don’t even care anymore. Asami tells me that her mother would’ve liked me, though."

"You’re easily likeable, Korra." Jinora assured her.

Korra huffed. "Yeah, tell Hiroshi Sato that." she laughed, but it didn’t quite reach her eyes. "So how exactly did Tenzin react?"

Jinora slightly smiled. "Well . . ." she began telling Korra everything, from Tenzin waking up the entire island and how red his face was. Korra couldn’t stop laughing, which made Jinora laugh as well.

__________________________

"I’m actually glad you’re leaving this weekend." Korra said as she helped Asami begin packing. With Asami, packing was something you had to do in as least two days advance. Korra knew this by now.

Asami rolled her eyes. " _Thanks_ , Korra." but she was smiling.

Korra’s sapphire blue eyes immediately widened. "That’s not what I meant." she gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. "It’s just getting chaotic in Republic City, and it’ll be nice for you to be away so I won’t have to worry about you. Well, I’ll still worry about you, but not as much."

"What exactly happened last night?"

Korra sighed. "Amon took seven benders bending away. And there were these people behind him with masks and gloves . . ." she shuddered. "It was awful, Asami. I don’t know how he did it. I can’t even do that, and I’m the avatar!"

Asami sat down on their bed, pulling Korra towards her. She wrapped her arms around her waist. Korra exhaled deeply, wrapping her arms tightly around Asami’s shoulders, resting her chin on Asami’s head. They stayed like this for awhile. Korra loved how she could lean on Asami. Nothing seemed to phase Asami. It helped. When Korra felt stressed, she seeked comfort in Asami. Even though Korra knew Asami did stress about things, especially things pertaining to her, she always remained focused about everything. At least while Korra felt weak, Asami was her strength.

The thing was, though, Korra couldn’t exactly tell Asami what happened. Sure, she could explain it all day, but you had to be there to understand the horrors of what she saw. Korra felt useless. She felt like this sometimes. Being the avatar was a lot of pressure on her. Some days she could go about living a normal life, and almost forget she’s the avatar. Almost. Korra had duties to maintain peace and balance in the world. Being a police officer felt right, because she could do exactly that.

But what she saw last night . . . It’s been haunting her. She keeps fearing the Amon is going to find her and take her own bending away. Korra needed her bending. She couldn’t be the avatar without it. The thought of losing it . . . It was just something she didn’t want to think about. Korra kissed the top of Asami’s head, gently breaking from her grasp. She continued helping Asami pack.

"I’m going to miss you, Sami." Korra told her, grinning over at her. She wanted the atmosphere to be light between them again.

Asami returned her smile, but still remained seated on the bed. "Oh really? How much are you going to miss me?" her green eyes darkened, and Korra knew exactly what she wanted.

Korra moved her suitcase to the floor, remaining calm and slow about her movements. She shrugged, walking back towards Asami. "I could show you?" she said in a low voice.

Her hands trailed down Asami’s torso, pulling her shirt above her head. Korra held Asami’s hands together in the air with one hand, kissing her on the lips hungrily. Asami laid down as Korra climbed on top of her, straddling her. Korra still kept Asami’s hands locked above her head. She kiss down her bare stomach, releasing Asami’s arms so she could work on removing her pants. Korra slowly pulled them off, kissing down her legs as she did so. This always drove Asami crazy, and Korra loved that. Korra took a step back, admiring the view of an almost naked Asami.

"I’m so lucky to be able to see you like this." Korra said as she kneeled down back on her knees.

She was kissing her way back up Asami’s leg tantalizingly slow. She kissed the inner of her thighs, lightly tracing her tongue over the heated skin. Asami let out a moan. Korra grinned up at her, seeing that Asami was staring back at her with green eyes that were so dark, they almost looked black. Korra arched an eyebrow, slowly removing her underwear. They never took their eyes off of each other as she did so. Korra gave her a wink, before kissing the most sensitive spot on Asami’s body. Asami let out a moan, spreading her legs further open as she plopped back onto the mattress.

Korra was relentless, but also teasing. She wanted Asami to know how much she would miss her, but once she was caught up in Asami, there wasn’t much stopping her. Korra’s learned over the years what she likes. She slowly dips her middle finger into Asami, earning another moan.

"K-korra . . ." she moaned. Korra melted whenever Asami said her name like that.

One of Asami’s hands were nestled into Korra’s hair, keeping her there. Korra could feel Asami getting closer. The grip on her hair, and the countless moans. Korra’s pace began to move slightly quicker, Asami arching her back at the movements. Within seconds, Asami was done. She tightened her grip on Korra, her body quivering and trembling. Korra kissed her thighs again, slowly working her way back up to her mouth. Korra stare into Asami’s green eyes, running a hand through her hair.

"I love you." she said as she began placing light kisses on Asami’s lips.

Asami flipped Korra over, causing Korra to let out a small laugh. Asami hovered over her, her eyes dark again. "Now it’s my turn to show you how much I’ll miss you . . ." she began removing Korra’s top, kissing her stomach.

__________________________

Lin wanted the Amon problem handled immediately. She wasn’t about to let him, or any of the other Equalist— that’s what they call themselves— commit crimes in her city. It was unlawful. And they’ll pay for the crimes they’ve already committed, she’ll make sure of that. There was a knock at her door.

"Come in." Lin said.

Saikhan entered her office. "You wanted to see me, Chief?"

Lin nodded, gesturing for him to sit down. "I want you to create a team of officers to track down these Eqaulist— _Amon_ — and arrest them. I don’t want any damn Equalist running through _my_ streets, thinking they could do whatever the hell they want."

Saikhan nodded his head. "Would you like me to put Kuvira and Korra on this team as well, Chief?"

Lin wanted to keep Kuvira and Korra off the team for personal reasons. Not only were they her best officers, but they were also like family to her. She’d grown very fond of them. The last thing she wanted was to be responsible for their death . . . or their bending to be taken away. Korra wasn’t just one of her officers, though. She was the avatar. And Lin didn’t want to be responsible for the avatar’s death or bending being taken away.

"Just Kuvira. I’ll handle Korra." Lin frowned at herself. _Like Korra is going to let Kuvira do this alone_. "You know what, just let me handle them. You make your team and report back to me with names of the officers who’ve chosen. I’ll give you further instructions then."

Saikhan nodded his head, standing up. "Yes, Chief." he said as she walked out of her office.

Lin sat back in her chair, sighing. Not only did she have _this_ problem to deal with. But now she’s going to deal with the wrath of Kuvira and Korra. If only they listened to her once in a goddamned while.

__________________________

Kuvira held the beer in her hand. The one she’s been sipping on the entire night so far. She watched as everyone was talking at once, laughing, having a good time. She smiled. It felt like home. She hasn’t felt this at home since she left Zaofu . . . It was a good feeling. A welcomed feeling. She really missed the BeiFong’s, and for a minute, she almost wanted to pull Su aside and ask for her old job back. But she loved being a police officer in Republic City. This Amon thing was just scaring her.

The twins were drunk— something they shouldn’t be since they’re underage— Opal and Bolin were also drunk. Well, Bolin was. Opal was just tipsy. Su was drunk. She always drank too much alcohol whenever it was present. Lin had a few drinks, but she wasn’t drunk. Kuvira doesn’t even think she’s ever seen Lin drunk before. She’s the Chief of Police first. Baatar Sr. was sober. If Su was drinking, he never did. He always watched out for her. But Kuvira thought it was entertaining to see him deal with a drunk Su. He seemed used to it by now, having been married to her long, and having seen her drunk on many occasions. Baatar wasn’t drunk. He had about two beers. He never got drunk, even when they were younger and Kuvira got drunk. It wasn’t in his nature.

Kuvira was sitting down on the couch in Opal’s and Bolin’s apartment. She offered for them to have dinner at her place, since it was slightly bigger than Opal’s, but the BeiFong’s loved to be in close corders with one another. So Opal’s place it was. Also, Lin refused to have anyone go into her huge apartment. And Tenzin didn’t want them _accidentally_ destroying Air Temple Island again.

It felt good, though, to be around everyone again. Kuvira didn’t grow up with a family, so when she met the BeiFong’s at a young age, they kind of became her family. Of course, there was always a line that was never crossed. Kuvira knew they weren’t her actual family. Su wasn’t her actual mom. And she was reminded of that on many occasions. Not that Su intentionally did it. Kuvira just always knew where she stood. Even when she was younger. Baatar flopped on the empty couch seat next to her.

"You’re quiet."

"I’m observing." she said as she took another sip of her beer.

"Right." he said with a smile. "Always observing."

"It’s nice to have everyone back together again." she said when they remained silent for a few minutes. "If Toph was here, it’d be a true BeiFong reunion."

Baatar snorted. "I don’t think Republic City could handle one of those."

Su stumbled over to Lin, almost spilling her drink. Lin gave her an annoyed expression as Su threw her arm around Lin’s shoulder, resting the side of her face against Lin’s. She was telling Lin how much she missed her, and how she should visit more often. Lin was trying to gently peel Su off of her as she was agreeing with a drunk Su, clearly over this dinner.

Kuvira laughed, nodding her head. "I’m going to have to agree with you on that one."

"But it is nice to see everyone together again. We don’t do this nearly as often as we should."

"True BeiFong method, right?"

He smiled, nodding his head. "Right." he gestured at her drink. "Only one beer? And here I thought you liked drinking."

Kuvira nudged him, shrugging her shoulders. "Things change, I suppose. Besides, I’ve got work in the morning. Can’t work with a hangover, now can I?"

He shook his head. "No. That wouldn’t look so professional."

She sighed, resting her head on his shoulder. "I’m glad you’re staying. Your company will be appreciated."

Baatar laughed, but wrapped his arm around her. "Now when did you become so formal? You can be honest with me: you like having me around."

Kuvira nodded her head, feeling her cheeks heat up. She was glad he couldn’t see her. "Alright. I like having you around."

He laughed again, tightening his grip. "I like having you around, too, Kuvira."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also, I'm building up the story. It isn't going to be exactly like first season of lok, but I will use some scenes . . . I have other things planned for this. Also, I want to use another villain from lok that was my favorite (other than Kuvira)... ANYWAY, any suspicions so far? I'd love to hear them.


	5. Not Everyone Gets What They Want

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I AM SO SORRY THIS IS LATE GUYS! I was so busy and writing this was a pain in my ass. I had the words in my head, but it was hard to put them down. I finally got it done after writing it for literally four days. Still not too happy about it. Hope it satisfies! Sometimes you need these kind of chapters before the real plot begins... Enjoy!

Thursday October 10th

Saikhan walked into Lin’s office, handing her a packet. Lin was standing, ready to leave. She frowned, taking the packet from his hands. She flipped through it, seeing files of officers. Her officers. She sat down. There were six groups of six. All of them highly skilled. She nodded her head.

"Alright, good job, Saikhan." she inhaled deeply. "I want each group at the big clubs populated by benders. I want another group of six at Air Temple Island—" she’ll have to speak to Tenzin about that. She knows the White Lotus are also there, but the airbenders need to have the best protection next to the avatar. The White Lotus protects the avatar, something she’ll need to give them a heads up on. "I want them to be undercover. We don’t need those damn Equalist to know we’re keeping an eye on them."

Saikhan nodded his head. "Yes, Chief. Have you spoken to Kuvira and Korra about this? Do I have a go to add Kuvira to one of my teams?"

Lin sighed heavily. She actually hasn’t spoken to any of them about it yet. She’s been meaning too. It’s late now. They’re probably not even here. She shook her head. "Korra will absolutely not be involved with this. I’ll talk to Kuvira once she’s all healed."

Saikhan huffed, shaking her head. "I mean this by no offense, Chief, but good luck keeping the avatar out of this."

The corners of Lin’s mouth twitched. She sighed again, her jaw setting. "I’ll do whatever I can to keep her away from this. The last thing we need is the avatar without her bending. Or dead."

Saikhan nodded his head. "Agreed, Chief."

_____________________________

"This is nice." Baatar said, as he placed his pillow on the couch.

Kuvira came out with a stack of blankets that made her look very small. He walked over to her immediately, taking them out of her hands. She smiled up at him, putting her hands on her hips as she watched him turn her couch into his new bed. She frowned slightly.

"We’ll buy you a bed tomorrow." she quickly said, as though it was already finalized.

Baatar shrugged his shoulders. "It’s not necessary. I don’t plan on staying here long . . ." he shrugged his shoulders again.

He didn’t want to become an inconvenience on Kuvira. He knew she liked her space, and he also knew that maybe she might feel uncomfortable about him being here after their past. Though it was long gone, and they were friends now, there was still that tension between each other that just barely crossed the lines of friendships. They were adults now. He didn’t want to sleep with her if she wasn’t his girlfriend. And he knew she would agree.

Kuvira looked disappointed at that. "Stay as long as you want, Baatar. You can help make this place feel more like home." she shrugged her shoulders, clearing her throat. She smiled at him. "You can water the plants, or something." she laughed at that. Baatar loved hearing that sound.

He glanced around her apartment, which was a good size. It was empty, like someone rarely lived here. It didn’t have the home feeling, but it had a Kuvira feeling, which he enjoyed. Her apartment wasn’t much different than how the one she used to live in back in Zaofu looked. Very little furniture, no personal belongings. She always decorated the place as though she would have to leave soon. He wondered if that had anything to do with the fact that growing up, she never had a solid place to call home. Even back in Zaofu, she probably thought her stay wasn’t going to be long.

"You don’t have any plants." he said, smiling over at her.

Kuvira shrugged her shoulders, leaning against the wall. "I’m just saying, you don’t have to leave so soon. You don’t have to leave at all." she pushed herself away from the wall, stifling a yawn. "You’re always welcomed here, Baatar."

And when she said those words, he really knew she meant them.

________________________________

Friday October 11th

Bolin stood in the middle of the arena. He had his hands placed on his hips, smiling proudly at the empty stands. He closes his eyes, hearing the crowd cheer for the Fire Ferrets. He can’t believe how long ago that was when he and Mako used to do Probending and met Korra. They were just teenagers.

That seems like a dream. And he can’t help but cringe and laugh at himself for liking Korra. That did not last long, and he was glad for it. He found the love of his life. And so did Korra. He easily remembers when Korra and Mako and Asami all had the most difficult relationship. Even thinking of it now exhausted him. He was glad Mako didn’t mess up too bad to the point where Korra and Asami left their lives. Now they all were friends, and happy. They were older and mature now.

But oh, how he misses the days of Probending. He missed being adored by the crowd, and the competition. When Toza wanted to retire, Bolin was the first person he asked to take over for him. Of course he accepted it. One thing Bolin will love more than Probending, is teaching it! He could help people, teens who are stressed or having a hard time and want to be apart of something. This is the place to come.

"Hey honey, whatcha doin?" Opal landed gracefully on the ground next to him. She was holding a brown bag that smelled of greasy food.

Bolin smiled fondly down at her, putting his arm over her shoulder. "I was just being nostalgic and stupid." he shook his head. "Whatchya got there?"

She held the bag out to him. "Your favorite, of course. I knew you’d be here all day trying to prepare the place for reopening tomorrow." she rested her head on his shoulder. "So, what were you being nostalgic about?"

"When I used to be a Probender. I wish you could’ve seen me."

Opal nudged him playfully. "I did listen to the radio broadcasting of it. And also read it in the newspaper."

"Yeah, but it’s _different_ when you’re actually here seeing it live." he tightened his arm around her. "You’ll get to see games, at least, once the arena reopens and practice begins. It gets pretty epic. I remember this one game we played and Korra fell over the edge, and then Mako right after her. But Korra was holding the edge _and_ also Mako. It was amazing."

"Was that when they both were dating?" Opal made a slight face. She never got to see Mako and Korra be together, but she’s heard plenty about it. Bolin knows she didn’t like it. Something about Mako’s indecisiveness about Asami and Korra really bothered her. And she also loved Korra and Asami together. They were all close friends, Bolin understood.

"No— Well, not really. I don’t know. It was all so confusing." he laughed. "You know, I really wish you airbenders would compete. It would be fun to see."

Opal snorted. "We’re not violent people, Bolin."

"It’s not like you’re hurting these people out of anger. It’s just a game." he said, throwing his arms out in front of him.

Opal laughed, rolling her eyes. "Still a no from me and every other airbender out there." she smiled. "But it would be cool to see. Airbenders would kick everyone’s butts."

Bolin laughed. "Because you guys would cheat."

Opal frowned, but was trying her hardest to fight a smile. "I don’t know what you’re talking about." she said using her best innocent voice.

_______________________________

"Lin, I don’t know . . . You know Korra and I work best as a team. If you want anything done, you’re going to have to keep us together."

Kuvira didn’t like that Lin suggested on separating them to handle this Equalist problem. Kuvira hasn’t worked without Korra since she became an officer out here. Korra knew all her moves before she even made them, and vise versa. But she understood why Lin didn’t want Korra to handle this problem. Korra joining the force wasn’t exactly welcomed by Lin. Like she really wanted the avatar’s life on her hands.

"Korra is going to be put on desk duty until we get this problem handled. Thankfully, it hasn’t gotten too bad. We can easily stop it by the end of next week, I’m sure of it." Lin said. She sounded angry about it. She should be.

Kuvira frowned. "Desk duty? Why don’t you just put her on temporary leave? That way she won’t have to waste her time—"

"That’s _exactly_ why I am putting her on desk duty. So she stays busy here where I can keep a good eye on her, instead of at home where she can still manage to intervene herself in this problem."

Kuvira nodded her head, crossing her arms over her chest. As much as Korra is going to hate this— and she’s _really_ going to hate this— Kuvira agreed with Lin. Even though Korra was the avatar and technically could intervene whenever she pleased, it was better to keep her out of the way. That way nobody had to worry about her. Besides, it’s not bad enough for the _avatar_ to get involved.

"You’re telling Korra about this." Kuvira said as she stood up.

Lin sighed., waving her off. "Of course I am."

Kuvira walked out of the police station, walking back to her apartment. She would have to come back later tonight for work. She was bummed to not be working with Korra, but she knew it would only be for a little while. Hopefully it _will_ be only for a little while . . .

Kuvira stopped at a nearby store, walking inside of it. She looked around at all the various things, waiting for something to catch her eye. She stopped when she saw it. It stood no bigger than the length of her foot to her knee. She picked it up, liking the weight of it. She smiled as she walked it over to the check out. She muttered a thank you as she grabbed her item, holding it close to her chest continuing her walk home.

She metalbent the locks, swinging her door open. She knew Su was right and she would have to eventually switch to platinum locks now that Baatar was staying with her. Because even though _she_ personally didn’t fear anything, she knew Baatar would be here by himself sometimes and she feared for _his_ well-being.

Excitedly, she set down the item she bought, placing it near the window. She stood back, putting her hands on her hips. It looked good. She grabbed her uniform, and her workout clothes, throwing them in a backpack. Before her shift began, she and Korra were going to workout in the gym at Korra’s and Asami’s house. Kuvira _loved_ the Sato Estate. It was huge and had just about anything you could ever need and more. Though Asami and Korra didn’t need the extra space, they loved it too.

It was slightly awkward that Hiroshi still lived there— something Korra hated— but the house was so big he was hardly noticed. Korra has been talking to Kuvira about moving out with Asami to their own place, but Asami was stuck on her home. Nothing better than the Estate. Even Kuvira could agree on that, but she did think moving out would be good for them.

She quickly made her way to her police car, throwing her backpack on the passenger seat. She put the keys in the ignition, driving towards the estate. She didn’t know if Korra would be there or not? Lin had called her in early to tell her what’s going on. She might’ve called Korra in early to tell her as well . . . But then again Lin might want to wait until Korra arrives for her shift and tell her then. Kuvira decided to send Korra quick text, telling her she would be coming. She also sent a text to Baatar to tell him she won’t be home until late in the middle of the night. Her phone buzzed.

" _So I should cancel our dinner plans_?" it was Baatar.

Kuvira’s eyebrows pushed together with confusion. " _We had plans_?" she flipped through her brain, wondering if her and Baatar did plan something and she forgot. She had a tendency to do that.

" _They weren’t official, don’t worry. I just thought it would be nice . . . We need to have a catch up dinner. If you want, of course. It not, we don’t have too. It was a stupid idea._ "

Kuvira rolled her eyes, smiling. Even through text, he still manages to be uncomfortable and awkward. " _I think that’s a wonderful idea, Baatar. But let me plan it. I know all the good restaurants._ "

" _Okay_. _Sounds good. Have a safe day at work_."

She smiled at the text message, being reminded of being back at Zaofu. He said the exact same thing to her then, always worried about her. She remembered this one conversation they had when she was going to move out here. Baatar told her he wished she choose a safer career. The thing was, Kuvira never liked safe. Her phone buzzed again. This time, it was Korra.

" _I’M SO ANGRY GET YOUR ASS OVER HERE SO I CAN KICK IT_."

Well, Lin told Korra.

____________________________

Korra ran through the dark alley ways of Republic City, bending earth from the ground to prop herself over the fence. She could hear the multiple footsteps behind her, but she didn’t dare turn around. She did earthbend a wall from behind her, to give herself more distance from these masked people.

Equalist.

She felt her heart beating throughout her entire body as she turned a dark corner. She heard more shouting, and people running towards her. She heard screeching of tires. Suddenly, she was surrounded. There was no where to run anymore. She knew she was going to have to fight. And hopefully, that’ll be enough.

Korra began throwing earth at a few masked Equalist, throwing fire at others. She knew better than to jump into the avatar state. It was there if she needed it, but she knew she also had to be careful when fighting in the avatar state. One deadly strike, and the cycle would be done forever. That was one of her biggest fears.

She was hit on the back with an electric glove, sending her hurling to the ground. She twitched, but before they could shock her again, she earthbent the ground sending the three Equalist surrounding her flying through the air. She pushed herself off of the ground with weak muscles, throwing fire at two Equalist who tried to shock her.

Suddenly, she was on the ground again. She didn’t know how it happened, but she couldn’t move her limbs. When she tired to weakly lift her arm from the ground and bend fire at someone, nothing came out. She cursed mentally at herself. Chi blockers. She knew that immediately. Korra was picked up off of the ground, still on her knees. Two Equalist held her by her shoulders, keeping her up.

She saw Amon walking towards her, and her heart began pounding even quicker. She needed to get out of here. But how? She couldn’t bend, and even if she wanted too, she could hardly move. Amon stood right in front of her, staring down at her through his mask.

"You’re done here, Avatar Korra. You’re not needed anymore. And now I will restore balance and equality throughout the world, by finishing you off."

He walked behind her, pulling her hair back so that she looked up at him. Her eyes widened as he placed his index finger and thumb to her forehead. Then, she felt nothing.

Korra woke up covered in a cold sweat. She was breathing heavily. She laid back down, closing her eyes. Asami wasn’t here to give her comfort. She was alone. Ever since seeing Amon take those people’s bending away, she’s been having nightmares about them. She’s been meaning to ask Kuvira, or even Lin, if they’ve been too. But she doesn’t want to seem weak to them. The avatar isn’t allowed to be weak.

She slammed her fist in her bed. What she _wanted_ to do was be out on duty. What she _wanted_ was not to be babysat by Lin or the White Lotus. It bothered her to be here, and not out there with Kuvira and the rest of the officers. She _should_ be doing something. But even Kuvira agreed with Lin that Korra should sit this one out until she is truly needed. It bothered Korra when people just saw the avatar, and not her. She knows Lin and Kuvira worry about _Korra_ , and not the avatar, but sometimes they make her feel like they _only_ care about the avatar.

Korra decided to push herself out of bed, knowing she won’t be able to sleep. She walked to her shared bathroom with Asami, her scent still lingering. Korra inhaled deeply. She never liked it when Asami had to leave on business. Being alone wasn’t exactly her . . . _thing_. She turned the shower on, taking her white tank top off. She removed her sweat pants, dropping them next to the floor. She stepped into the cold water, pushing her dream to the back of her head.

Korra was in the middle of washing her hair when she heard a noise. She froze under the water, her hands in her soapy hair. Korra was trying to listen. Sometimes one of Asami’s house keepers would show up earlier, or leave later, but before she went to bed she checked the entire Estate— something she _always_ did— and nobody was here. Korra quickly got out of the shower, forgetting about her hair. She pulled her clothes on, even though she was soaking wet. She left the water running, so if there was someone inside the house, they wouldn’t know she knew they were there.

She walked toward her bedroom door, hearing footsteps. _Someone was inside_. Korra hid behind one of her and Asami’s tall dressers, pressing her back against the wall. She heard her bedroom door open quietly. She held her breath, waiting to see who this person was. What she ended up seeing made her heart stop. It was an Equalist. Four of them. Two were sneaking their way towards the bathroom. The other two stood by the door.

Korra needed to think quickly. One against four. Four non-benders against the avatar. She could use her bending, destroying the room. She shook her head, her eyes going to the metal cables she had resting on top of her police uniform. She knew was she needed to do, and hoped it would work. She jumped across her bed, grabbing the metal cable. As the two Equalist by the door saw her, they began coming after her, shouting at the other two. She threw the metal cables around one of the Equalist, dropping them when one of the Equalist touched the metal with his electric glove. He ended up only electrifying his Equalist friend.

Using the shower water, Korra waterbent the water on the two Equalist close to the bathroom, freezing the water. A shot rang through the room and Korra felt a stinging sensation in her leg. She glanced down at her thigh, seeing her own blood begin to pour down her leg. _Now she was pissed_. She airbent the gun from the Equalist’s hand, running up to him only to smash her elbow through his mask. His googled shattered. Her leg was screaming at her, but she didn’t care. She grabbed all the Equalist, removing their gloves. She threw them in the corner of her bedroom, wrapping the four Equalist up in more metal cables.

Once they were tied up, Korra sat down on the edge of her bed, examining her leg. The bullet didn’t go through, so now she couldn’t heal her own leg. She sighed heavily, grabbing her cell phone. She dialed Lin’s number.

"What are you doing up so late?" was the first thing out of her mouth.

"Four Equalist snuck in my house. I got shot and need to go to the hospital, but I can’t drive. I have them tied down." Korra felt calm. She was tired, but she felt calm.

" _What the fuck_? Are _you_ okay?" Lin must be confused, since Korra did, in fact, sound okay. And she was okay. Not her first gunshot wound.

"Yeah, just send someone over. Actually, can you come and take me to the hospital? Don’t tell Kuvira about this."

"Wasn’t even planning on it. She’s working anyway. I don’t need her distracted. I’ll be there in five minutes. Don’t let yourself bleed out, Korra." Lin told her before hanging up.

Korra set her phone down limping into the bathroom. She grabbed a towel, placing it on her wound, wincing at the amount of pressure she was applying. She had soap running down her face. She waterbent the water from her hair, but she still felt the soap in it. She limped over to the tied up Equalist, glaring at them. She was thankful Asami wasn’t here right now. She knows very well that Asami can handle herself, but Korra still worries. She sat back down on the edge of her bed, hearing sirens in the distance. She continued to glare at the Equalist.

"Who sent you?" they all work under someone, Korra knew that. Amon was her first guess. Who else controlled the Equalist?

None of them answered. Korra metalbent the wires tighter. "I. _Said_. Who sent you?" she said through her clenched teeth.

Still, no answer. Korra knew they wouldn’t. Not now, at least. But she knew once Lin was through with them, they’ll be spilling out all their dirty little secrets.

_______________________

Baatar came home late. He didn’t rush his time at work, and actually stayed later since he knew Kuvira was going to be working all night. With both Asami and Hiroshi gone, he had to make sure all their projects were still moving along the way they were supposed too. He liked the independence of working as an individual, but his missed home.

He walked into the apartment, feeling both hungry and exhausted. He was going to choose sleep over eating. Baatar dropped his keys on the counter in the kitchen removing his jacket. He walked over to the linen closet, pulling out his pillow and blankets. Kuvira and him were going to go bed shopping tomorrow during her lunch break. He didn’t mind sleeping on the couch. He could sleep anywhere, really. A habit that came from working on all those designs growing up and falling asleep on many desks.

He plopped down on the couch, removing his shoes. He sighed heavily, glancing over at the window. He rubbed his eyes, adjusting his glasses. He immediately smiled when he saw that Kuvira bought a plant.

_____________________________

"Sir, the operation didn’t go well. They were caught."

Hiroshi clenched his cell phone, already irritated that he was woken up in the middle of the night. "How the _fuck_ did four of our highly trained Equalist get caught?"

"W-We’re not so sure about that, Sir. But we’re handling it."

"And what does Amon think of this news?"

"He’s not happy about it either, sir."

There was a knock on his hotel door. Hiroshi sighed in the phone. " _Tell Amon to give me a call_." he growled before hanging up.

Hiroshi got up, putting his robe on. He walked over the his door, frowning. Who would be here at this hour? He opened the door to see a sobbing Asami. Immediately, he brought her into his arms, walking inside of his room. He began checking her, to see if she had any wounds. He needed to know what was wrong. Why was she crying? But she was resisting against him, gently pushing herself away.

"I have to go back to Republic City, dad. Korra was injured. I need to be with her." she shook her head, wiping her eyes with the backs of her hands. "I’m sorry. I know you needed me here, but . . ." she trailed off, not being able to finish.

Hiroshi hated seeing his only daughter in tears. But he hated Korra. And he disliked their relationship from the beginning. He knew how hurt she would be if something happened to Korra, but she would understand eventually . . . he hoped.

"It’s alright, Asami. You can leave. I’ll finish the meetings by myself."

She nodded her head, hugging herself. "Alright. Thank you. I’m going to take an airship. I’ll see you when you return." she quickly kissed his cheek.

Hiroshi shut his door, his fist clenched together. His phone began ringing. Finally the person he wanted to talk too. It was time to show Amon who the true boss was.


	6. Trust Is A Big Deal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Asami was worried
> 
> Kuvira was bored
> 
> Baatar was in love
> 
> Mako was nervous
> 
> Korra was scared

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This Equalist problem is becoming my problem. Enjoy these characters while they're still alive.... Have fun!

Saturday October 12

Asami sat in a chair next to the hospital bed Korra was sleeping in. She was okay— and definitely going to survive— but she needed surgery and to stay over night. Tomorrow morning she would be given the okay to go home. Asami held her hand tightly in her own. She now realizes she may have overreacted slightly, but getting that call from Korra saying she got shot really scared her. It wasn’t the first time Korra got shot, nor would it probably be the last, unfortunately. It came with the job, and being the avatar.

What rubbed Asami wrong way the most was that people snuck into her own house and tried attacking Korra. The Sato Estate wasn’t easy to get into. There were guards surrounding the place all the time. And in all her years of living in that house, nobody has ever tried breaking in. Sure, it made sense that some Equalist caught on to their relationship, and maybe some of them even knew of Korra living at the Estate, but it still bothered Asami.

In a place she used to feel so safe in, all she felt was scared.

Even though she tried her hardest to refuse to leave Korra, the hospital kicked her out because visiting hours were over, and since her and Korra weren’t technically family, she had no right being there after hours. Angrily, she marched back to her home. Lin and the other officers were still there, investigating the scene. Her bedroom didn’t look like a complete disaster, and she felt like rolling her eyes knowing Korra opted not to use bending so that she didn’t destroy their room. But Asami didn’t care about her room being destroyed. She cared about Korra’s safety.

Her bathroom was soaked with water and soap, and there was blood in the bathroom and in her bedroom, especially on the edge of their bed. Korra’s blood. Asami sighed heavily as everything was being gathered. Lin was barking orders at everyone, looking as upset as Asami felt. Asami’s eyes went to the corner of the room, where she saw a stack of gloves. _Equalist gloves_. She walked over to them, leaning over to look at them. She didn’t touch them, though. What she did realize was the familiarity of these gloves. And her heart sank.

She remembers it very clearly. Her father told her that he was working on a new weapon, one that didn’t cause too much external damage like guns do. Asami examined his designs and helped him build the first one. It was a nice success. She thought they weren’t going to go further than the one glove they made. Her father didn’t say anything about continuing it, but she thought if he ever did, they would be given to the police officers for extra protection.

Now she understood the horrors of what they were really used for. Her head hurt as the pieces began connecting. Is Future Industries involved with the Equalist? Does her father know about this? Asami didn’t like this one bit. If Lin or anyone traced these gloves back to Future Industries, it’ll ruin their reputation. She flinched when she felt a hand on her shoulder. It was Lin.

"You okay, Sato?" Lin looked at her with heavy concern.

Asami quickly nodded her head, standing up straight. "Just . . . frazzled." she inhaled deeply. "I couldn’t say with Korra. Do you need any help here? I want to be busy."

Lin shook her head. "We’re just about wrapped up here." she shifted uncomfortable. "I could talk to the nurses and let you stay with Korra for the night."

Asami wrapped her arms tightly around herself, giving one chaste nod. "That would be great. Thanks, Chief." she stared at the blood on the floor, knowing she’ll have to clean that up. She knew it was already going to stain, but she needed to be busy.

"I’ll give you a call when I get the okay." Lin said on her way out.

Asami walked down the hall, trying to find the cleaning supplies. She didn’t know what would get blood stains out . . . She actually have never cleaned anything before. Not that she didn’t want too, necessarily, but she’s always been busy with work. Even as a child, learning underneath her dad was one of my exciting things. But now nobody was here to help her. And she really wanted that blood to be cleaned up.

After searching for a good ten minutes, she finally found the bleach. She didn’t know if this would work, but it smelt strong and she used it sometimes to get grease stains out of her clothes, so it was the best option. She grabbed a sponge and walked back up to her now vacant bedroom. If it weren’t for the blood scattered around the room, you wouldn’t have even been able to tell anything happened.

Asami got on all fours, pouring a little bit of the bleach on the ground where the blood was, scrubbing it as hard as she could. The smell of the bleach was quite soothing. She glanced up to her bed, knowing she’s going to have to just throw the blankets away. Not that she was squeamish about blood, she just didn’t want to have to deal with having it all be cleaned and forgotten about. Besides, she didn’t like the blanket much anyway . . .

She sighed heavily knowing that’s not the truth. She stopped cleaning when she got the text from Lin. Asami shot up from the ground, washing her hands. She changed her clothes, grabbing a backpack and filling it with some of Korra’s clothes. She zipped her Future Industries jacket on. Korra didn’t actually know she was back home. She was already out when she finally arrived. Asami knew she was going to have to talk to Korra about the gloves. She _wanted_ too. But she was also scared of knowing the truth . . . She didn’t want Future Industries to be involved in a scandal like this.

She drove back to the hospital, feeling exhausted. Not so much from lack of sleep. Just . . . this was just a big toll on her. But she was happy Korra was okay. Korra was strong, something she always admired about her girlfriend. But just the thought of losing Korra . . . Asami loved her. She was in love with her. Korra was the person she wanted to spend the rest of her life with. These last two years have been amazing, and she knew that Korra was the one. It’s weird, they always talked about spending forever with one another, but none of them talked about marriage. Asami wanted to marry Korra. Hell, she would do it right now if Korra was up for it. But she didn’t know if Korra was.

Not that she doubted Korra loved her, or wanted to spend her life with her, but marriage was something else entirely. But Asami refused to live life waiting. But . . . marriage? Was she really sure about that? It’s only been two years that Korra and her have been dating . . . Marriage was just a huge decision. Maybe she should wait it out. She is just scared about the fact that she could’ve lost Korra had things gone wrong.

When she arrived at the hospital, Korra was awake and out of bed. Asami immediately frowned, folding her arms across her chest. "What are you doing?"

Korra jumped at the sound of her voice, turning around to face her. She had her phone in her hand. "Asami!" she threw her arms out, waddling over to Asami.

Asami quickly closed the distance, bring Korra into a tight embrace. She inhaled her, putting her face in the nook of her neck. Asami sat Korra back down on the bed, but continued the embrace. She pulled away, only enough to look at her. "Don’t ever scare me like that again."

Korra gave her one of her famous crooked grins. "I’ll try my best, but no promises." Korra’s blue eyes were bright. She was clearly excited about Asami being here. "What are you doing back so early?"

Asami almost rolled her eyes. She smiled at Korra, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. "You really think I would stay knowing you were injured?" she shook her head. "I’m just glad you’re okay. I love you, Korra."

Korra leaned in, giving her a light kiss on the lips. "I love you, too. And I’m really happy you’re here." she glanced away from Asami, and when she looked back, the brightness in her eyes was gone. But she didn’t say anything.

Asami sighed heavily, remember her unpleasant revelation today. "Korra, I have to tell you something."

Korra frowned, looking concerned. "What is it?"

Asami shifted, so that she wasn’t facing Korra anymore. She put her hands on the bed either side of her, and stared at the ground. "The gloves the Equalist use . . . They come from Future Industries."

Korra was silent for a moment. When she spoke up again, her voice was more serious. "How do you know?"

Asami inhaled again, too afraid too make eye contact with her. She could feel Korra’s eyes on her. "Because I’m the one who made them." she finally met Korra’s eyes. "Well, the first one. I didn’t know what they were being used for. I didn’t even know more were made."

Korra looked angry, but not at her. "That’s not good, Asami." she grabbed her hand, giving it a tight squeeze.

Asami resting her head on Korra’s shoulder, wrapping her arms around her. "Can we not talk about it right now? I just want to lay here with you."

Korra nodded, shifting back so her back was pressed against the pillows on the bed. Asami crawled up next to her, resting her head on her chest. She was listening to the sound of Korra’s strong heartbeat, Korra’s arms tighten protectively around her. Asami knew it wasn’t good that those gloves come from Future Industries. And she knew Korra being attacked means the Equalist are after her. But right now, all she focused on was the sound of Korra’s heart, and Korra’s arms wrapped around her.

________________________________

Sunday October 13th

Kuvira was bored out of her mind. Usually, that’s how undercover work made her feel. And she was thankful tonight was a peaceful night, but without Korra making stupid jokes to entertain her, she really felt like she was going to die from boredom.

Staking out usually wasn’t her favorite thing to do. Korra and her liked action. Doing this reminded her of when she used to guard back at Zaofu, and though it was a great job, Kuvira was bored. That’s what ultimately drove her to move to Republic City and become a police officer— boredom. But now, here she was, babysitting a club. She knows how important it is to make sure these people stay safe. But she couldn’t help herself but feel _bored_.

She was sitting in the corner of the club, a drink in her hand. It’s water, since she is on the job. Besides, she’s never been a fan of public drinking anyway. Her eyes scanned around the room for the hundredth time. She inhaled deeply, glancing down at her watch. She still had another hour to go until her shift was over. She frowned slightly. How people were still awake and partying at this time was beyond her. She has never been the fan of the night life, but she’s lived it enough to know a lot about it.

Her phone buzzed in her pocket. It had been going off for awhile now. She ignored it at first, not wanting to be distracted even for a moment. But then it buzzed again. And again. She was receiving multiple text messages from someone. Still, she didn’t want to be distracted. If something happened because she wasn’t paying attention— she won’t ever here the end of it. Lin might actually fire her. She wasn’t sure which one she would actually prefer. She glanced at the other five undercover officers scattered around the room. Nobody would even notice they were undercover. Some were dancing, others were mingling. Kuvira was the only one sitting in the dark corner.

Suddenly, she wasn’t alone. An older man, probably in his late thirties, sat down in front of her. His skin was dark, and his eyes were a bright blue. He’s definitely water tribe. She narrowed her eyes at him when she recognized who he was. Shady Shin. She’s arrested enough Triple Threats to know who their leader was.

"I never pinned you as the club-going girl." he said with a flirtatious smile. But his eyes were deceiving.

Kuvira arched an eyebrow at him. "What do you want, Shady Shin?"

He sat back, holding his hands up as a gesture of surrender. "Now, now. And here I thought we could be friends. Because if _we_ were friends, I’d be able to tell you some useful information that may help you with this Equalist problem."

Kuvira frowned. How did he know about the Equalist problem? They’ve kept themselves quiet, except for their rallies which aren’t violent, just annoying. Nobody but Equalist supporters who were at the underground rally know about Amon’s ability to take bending away. Lin’s worked hard to make sure that stays a secret from the public, to avoid a panic and a war between benders and non-benders. It’s been good for the officers, too. She took a long drink of her water, never breaking eye contact with him.

"Keep going."

He gave her a sly smile. "As you know, I run a very high gang group," she nodded her head, rolling her eyes. "I just thought you and Lin—"

" _Chief Beifong_."

His sly smile grew. " _Chief Beifong_ ," he corrected. "would like to know that President Raiko has been supplying an interesting amount of money to Future Industries."

Kuvira set her glass of water down, feeling like her time was just wasted. "And here I thought you actually had something _useful_ to say." she narrowed her eyes at him again. "How do _you_ know where President Raiko is putting his money?"

Shady Shin arched an eyebrow at her, his facial expression hasn’t faltered. "That’s need to know business, sweetheart." he blew out a long breath, looking slightly uninterested. "It may not _seem_ suspicious to you, but don’t you think it’s quite odd that a non-bender is supporting a non-bender run company. Look at what these Equalist have as means of transportation. Or those fancy gloves they wear. Who else would be willing to supply them?"

"Everyone in Republic City drives Satomobiles." Kuvira said, but she couldn’t help but actually _find_ this information suspicious. Would Future Industries have any involvement with the Equalist? No . . . Asami is dating the avatar. She wouldn’t go against Korra. But Hiroshi does hate Korra . . . But that’s only because she’s dating his daughter . . .

Shady Shin stood up, shrugging his shoulders as he shoved his hands in his coat pockets. "If you need more information, I’d definitely like us to continue this _friendship_." he gave her a wink before walking away.

Kuvira pulled her phone out to give Mako a call to look into this information for her. She didn’t want to go to Lin until she had something better to stand on than a gang leader’s suspicions. When she pulled her phone out, she was also able to check to see who’s been texting her. Fifteen text messages from Asami. Kuvira frowned. _What the hell was_ she _doing up at this hour_? Kuvira didn’t read the messages until she was done leaving a message on Mako’s phone. She wasn’t too surprised he didn’t answer. He was sleeping.

She decided to read the messages, to make sure everything was okay with Asami. Sometimes if Korra didn’t answer her phone, Asami would go to Kuvira knowing Korra was usually always with her. Her heart nearly stopped when she read Asami’s messages.

_Are you with Korra?_

_Is she okay?_

_Why aren't you answering? Kuvira!_

_Korra said she was going to the hospital. Will you be there?_

_Can you tell me if everything is okay with Korra?_

_How did this happened? Kuvira, are_ you _okay as well?_

_I'm on my way back to Republic City. Tell Korra I'll be there shortly if you're with her._

The messages continued to be repeating ones, asking the same question: _Is Korra okay_? Kuvira didn’t know what was going on. She still had thrity minutes until her shift was over. But now she was more distracted than ever. She bounced her leg, becoming impatient. She wanted to know what the hell happened to Korra. How could anything happened to Korra? Korra was supposed to be home sleeping. She shouldn’t have been in any form of danger . . .

Once her shift ended, Kuvira helped close the club and make sure everyone was gone before she pulled her phone out, calling Asami. She would call Korra, but she didn’t know if she would answer or not.

"Kuvira?" Asami’s voice sounded groggy and hoarse. "Is everything okay?"

"I could ask you the same thing. What happened to Korra?"

There was silence. "You haven’t heard?"

Kuvira clenched the phone, feeling irritation seep through her. "No." she tried to keep her voice level, but it didn’t work.

There was more silence. "Korra was attacked by Equalist. One of them shot her leg. She needed surgery, but she’s okay. She’ll be released today, and back to normal by the end of this week."

Kuvira felt herself trembling with anger. "Was she attacked at your house?"

"Yes." Asami sighed. "I don’t know how they managed to get in . . . They’re in custody right now."

Kuvira’s head snapped up. "Perfect. Okay, I’ll call you later." she needed to go speak with Lin. "Wait, is Korra awake?"

"No. Would you like me to wake her, though? She would probably want to talk with you about it all."

"No. Just text me when you’re bringing her home and I’ll bring over some food."

"Sounds good. See you later."

Kuvira put her phone back into her pocket, getting into her car. She was fuming with anger. If she had it her way, she would collect every non-bender in town and interrogate them until she found her little group of Equalist and kill them all. But she knows that’s the angry speaking, not what she really wants. What really made her upset is that she _doesn_ ’ _t_ know how they’re going to solve this. It’s not like they know where the Equalist are hiding. And during the day, they blend in with everyone else. How were they going to end this before it’s too late?

___________________________

Baatar was sitting on the couch reading a book when Kuvira stormed in, slamming the door behind her. He had already been up for hours before she came home. Kuvira walked to her room without even glancing over his way. She was gone for a moment, going to her bedroom. He heard the sound of metal hit the ground from her room. He began rising from the couch when she returned back in his sight, only to go into her bathroom. He heard the shower turn on. She’s upset about something. He can tell. He’s seen her angry many times to know.

Kuvira wasn’t in the shower long. She came out with her hair braided down her back, wearing traditional Zaofu clothing. He couldn’t help but smile at the sight. She looked exactly the way she did when she lived back in Zaofu, two years ago. It was nice to see her wearing the clothing, even though she didn’t need too living out in Republic City. His smile fades when he saw how exhausted she looked.

"Kuvira, are you okay?"

She stopped where she stood, immediately looking apologetic. "I didn’t wake you when I came in, did I?"

Baatar shook his head. "You know I hardly sleep." he patted the empty spot on the couch next to him. "Sit. Tell me what’s wrong?"

Kuvira sighed, looking a lot younger as she walked towards him. Most of the time she always looked more older. Not in with age, exactly, but demeanor. She’s always professional. The way she speaks, she sounds like a leader. And with the sound of her voice, people often mistake her to be much older than she actually is. But she has youthful looks. Especially when she isn’t scowling. She looks a lot younger. She took a seat next to him, folding her arms around herself. She met his gaze.

"Korra was attacked by Equalist last night." she shook her head.

Baatar frowned with confusion. _What were Equalist_? "Is she okay?" he knew Korra had become an important person in Kuvira’s life. They both were partners, and Kuvira had gone through a lot with Korra. She never really talks about it with him, but she mentioned a few things to Su, who mentioned it to him. He only knew Korra as the avatar. But to Kuvira, Korra was family.

Kuvira nodded her head. "Thankfully."

They sat in silence for a moment. Baatar’s frown remained, though. "Kuvira, what are Equalist?"

Her eyes widened slightly. "Oh, yes, you wouldn’t know about them. They’re just a group of non-benders who hate benders. Their leader is a masked guy named Amon." she placed her hand against her forehead. "Try to steer clear of them. They’re not good people." she shudder lightly at an unknown thought. She rested her head against his shoulder. "It’s just exhausting work."

He put his arm around her, chuckling lightly. "I thought you liked challenging work?"

She smiled. "I suppose you’re right about that." her smile faded immediately. Baatar wanted so desperately to see that smile return.

"I see you still wear Zaofu clothing?" he knew the change of the subject would be a good little distraction from her troubles.

Kuvira laughed, her arm draped around his waist. This contact felt normal, something he’s used too, but it also made him feel nervous. He didn’t exactly know where Kuvira was with her feelings for him. Its been too long. That’s why he wanted to go out to dinner and talk about it with her. Because he has always loved Kuvira. Ever since they were teenagers. She knows that. And he honestly didn’t think he would ever stop. If two years of hardly seeing each other didn’t stop his feelings for her, he didn’t expect them to ever leave. He even tried dating other women, knowing it would be healthy to try to move on from Kuvira. To let them both live separate lives. But none of them worked out. Nobody could compared to Kuvira.

"I guess old habits die hard." he saw her frown slightly. Maybe she also was referring to _their_ old habits with one another as well. She let out a sigh, closing her eyes.

Baatar pulled a blanket over Kuvira, picking his book back up. She fell asleep quicker than she ever has with him. Baatar held her, feeling content with her in his arms. He was going to always be here for her, no matter what, and how ever she needed him to be there for her. That’s what you do for the people you love.

_____________________________

Mako was looking into what Kuvira had suggested. He wouldn’t be lying if he didn’t feel uncomfortable looking into Future Industries. His best friend was the daughter of the CEO of Future Industries, someone he also knew and admired. But now here he was, trying to get a search warrant to look into their money exchanges within the last couple of months. He didn’t want to cause any unnecessary problems, but he also knew it wasn’t Kuvira’s intentions to start anything either. That’s why he is pushing to look into this— so that they both can rest at ease.

Lin opened her office door, calling for him to see her immediately. Mako silently cursed himself, knowing she was going to see his request for a warrant. He sighed heavily, pushing himself up from his chair, walking over to her office nervously. He knew she was going to be mad. Kuvira was going to have to pay for this.

"Why do I see you requesting a search warrant for Future Industries?" her voice was heavy with irritation.

Mako swallowed loudly. He knew he was going to have to throw Kuvira under the bus, because he couldn’t make up another excuse to tell her. "Kuvira suggested we look into it."

Lin frowned, looking surprised. "And _why_ would she do that?" he knew she was thinking what he thought: Kuvira was practically family to Asami, she would never want to work behind her back.

"She mentioned something about receiving some information about money being supplied to them recently that seemed suspicious. She just wanted me to look into it, but didn’t go any further with her reasoning behind it." he shifted uncomfortably where he stood.

Lin frowned. "I’m going to talk to Kuvira before any request is sent. Also, have you thought about talking to Asami about it first? She is your friend, is she not?"

Mako nodded his head. "Right, Chief. I’ll get on it."

She shook her head. "Talk to her about it when you get off your shift. You have more important matters to be working on than trying to accuse the most important company in the city— hell, the whole world."

Mako nodded his head again. "On it, Chief." he left her office in a hurry, sighing heavily as he walked back to his desk. Kuvira was _definitely_ paying for this.

___________________________

"I was in the shower when I heard them. They nearly scared the hell out of me." Korra was grinning as she told the story. "But like always, not many people can win against the avatar." she flexed her arms.

If Korra had to be honest with herself, she was scared. She was scared that she would be down for a week, with her leg healing and all. She was scared that Asami could’ve been home when they came to attack. She was scared that they could’ve killed her, had their aim been better. She was terrified to sleep in her own home. But she didn’t want to let anyone else know about her fears. She needed to be strong. Fearless. At least she could pretend that on the outside.

"I’m just glad you’re okay." Kuvira said, placing a hand on her shoulder. She sighed heavily, her eyes glancing over at Asami, before looking back at Korra. "Can we talk?"

Korra nodded her head, turning towards Asami, but Asami was already up. "I’m going to go make some tea." she gave Korra a kiss on the lips, almost as if she was saying goodbye. This hurt Korra, and she saw in Kuvira’s eyes that it hurt her as well.

"What is it?" Korra asked once Asami was out of the room. She knew it was important if Asami couldn’t here. Kuvira usually always told Asami everything, because she knew Korra would tell her anyway.

"How has Asami been doing lately?"

Korra frowned. That was a weird question. If Kuvira wanted to know so bad, she could’ve easily just asked Asami herself. "She’s been okay. Kuvira, tell me what this really is about. You didn’t send Asami away just to ask about her." Korra knew Kuvira better than that.

Kuvira sighed, looking down at her hands in her lap. "I had Mako make a request to get a search warrant to look into Future Industries . . ."

Korra’s eyes widened slightly. She remembered back to her conversation with Asami about the Equalist gloves being from Future Industries. And now here was Kuvira, the second person she could trust with her life, telling her her _own_ suspicions with Future Industries. This worried Korra. The last thing she wanted was Future Industries to be involved with something like . . . this. That kind of scandal wouldn’t be good for the company. A company that was run by the love of her life, and the love of her life’s father.

"Don’t." Korra immediately said.

Kuvira frowned, sighing. "Korra . . ."

"No, Kuvira, don’t. Let me handle this."

Kuvira’s frown deepened. "What are you planning on doing? Nothing illegal, I hope."

Korra forced a grin. "Of course not. I’m going to handle this legally, like I do most things." her smile faded. "Just don’t say anything to Lin. And tell Mako to drop the request."

Kuvira nodded her head, but she didn’t look happy about it. "Alright Korra. But you aren’t doing this alone. We’re a team, remember? We’ll always be a team."

Korra nodded. "Okay." she didn’t know exactly what she was planning on doing, and she wasn’t sure if she wanted Kuvira to join her just in case it all went down hill. But the one thing Korra was sure about, she was doing this illegally.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm kuviraforevergirl and I approve of this chapter. Also, no chapter until later next week! Sorry.


	7. Don't Stop Me Now

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Every chapter will now be song titles. So... Yeah, I'm planning to wrap this Equalist problem within the next few chapters so I can enter the new villain. So hang in there if you're tired of it like I am! Enjoy this. Feed back is always welcomed (:

Sunday October 13th (cont)

Kuvira collapsed on the couch in her apartment, pulling her phone out when it began ringing. Baatar was still at work, and knowing him, he’s probably going to be there until late in the middle of the night. He was a hard and addictive worker, just like herself. Kuvira had spent the entire day with Korra. She was tired, having been up for a day and a half now. But it was also Sunday, which meant her weekly call from Su.

"Hey Su." Kuvira forced herself to sound light, so Su wouldn’t be worried about her. It was stupid, really, because no matter how much Kuvira lied or faked that everything was okay, Su always managed to know that wasn’t the truth.

"Hello my darling, how was your day today?" she sounded like she was in a good mood, which made Kuvira feel better. One thing that terrified Kuvira the most was an upset Su. That was dangerous.

"It was good. I worked all night last night, and haven’t been able to catch up on some much needed sleep today. I did, however, manage to be productive today and I bought Baatar a bed. I am waiting for him to return home to help me put it together, though." Kuvira was supposed to buy the bed with Baatar, but she knew what he liked, so she took it upon herself to buy it without him. She would’ve liked to set it up herself, so that it would be a nice surprise for when he came home, but she knew he would be much quicker and better at putting it together than she.

"That’s great. Is he working right now?"

"Yeah," she let out a soft sigh. "You know how he is. Always working."

"I’m really happy you took him in. I would’ve been worried if he lived on his own. I know he is capable of taking care of himself, but he needs someone to bring him back to reality. He is much like his father." she paused for a moment. "I also think sometimes you need that as well."

Kuvira knew Su was right about that. Both her and Baatar would easily lose themselves in their work, which caused many sleepless nights, or skipped meals. But interestingly enough, that never caused a rift in their relationship. If anything, it caused a lot of understanding. Kuvira loved her personal space, and so did Baatar. So working as hard or as long as they did was actually healthy for them. Of course, back then, their relationship wasn’t technically a healthy one to start with. It was never . . . conventional.

"Has he told you anything about how long he plans to stay out there?" Su asked her.

"Actually, no. But he’s welcomed to stay as long as he wants." Kuvira enjoyed Baatar being here. It was nice to have him around again.

"Alright, darling. I miss you. I wish you could take more days off and visit. Everyone in Zaofu misses you as well."

Kuvira slightly smiled at that. "Yeah, well, next time I get some extra vacation I’ll make a trip down there." she missed the metal city so much, but Republic City was also her home now. And she loved it as much as Zaofu, even if she didn’t feel safe at the moment. But it was her job to make sure the city was safe, and she wasn’t going to rest until it was. "I’ll tell Baatar to call you tomorrow. I know you worry too much about him."

"I worry too much about _everything_." she said with a light chuckle. "Alright, I’ll let you sleep. I love you, Kuvira."

"I love you, too, Su." Kuvira hung up, sighing heavily.

She changed into her pajamas, which are just sweats and a t-shirt. She walked into her guest room, which was just a junk room. She began cleaning it, moving things around to clear room for Baatar. She cleared out the closet, cleared the dressers out. She moved all the stuff into her room. She slide the mattress and the box where the bed was in into the room. She grabbed sheets and blankets, putting them on a chair she placed in the corner of the room.

She stared at the box, her hands placed firmly on her hips. The bedframe was metal, something she thought Baatar would like since he is used to metal _everything_. Kuvira liked it too, though her bedframe was wood. She could probably try her hand at setting it up, since she could use her bending if she needed the extra help. The instructions seemed simple enough. She cut the box open, pulling out the pieces. They felt alive under her hands. She placed them all on the floor, staring at the bolts and screws and wondering where in the world those were supposed to go.

She knelt down, grabbing a bigger part of the bed, and a long piece. She stared at them, frowning. She put them together, wondering if they fit well. She wanted to just metalbend them together, but she knew that wouldn’t be the best idea. Baatar would lecture her how you can’t always bend things together and call it a night. You have to actually follow instructions if instructions are given. If Kuvira was going to do this, she was going to do this right. Besides, she wanted to be able to brag to Baatar that she put the bed together all on her own _without_ her bending.

That quickly became more difficult than Kuvira thought it would be. She was stuck trying to screw these two screws in, becoming frustrated when they weren’t going in correctly. She heard her front door open, and immediately set the bed down, running out to the livingroom. She stood by the entrance leading into the hallway. She gave Baatar a bright smile, even though he looked at her with heavy suspicion from his spot at the door. He slowly set his keys down, removing his coat, his eyes still locked on her.

"Is everything okay, Kuvira?" his eyebrows pushed together slightly.

She nodded her head. "Yeah, why wouldn’t things be okay?" she folded her arms across her chest, shrugging her shoulders. "You’re home early, I was just surprised is all." she swallowed loudly, forcing the smile to return. Surprising Baatar wasn’t always easy, because he was one of the few people Kuvira couldn’t lie too.

Baatar narrowed his eyes slightly at her. "Sorry to surprise you. Am I interrupting something? I can leave for a few hours if you’d like . . ." he immediately regretted what he was saying, his face showing it. "I’ll just leave."

Kuvira’s eyes widened. " _What_? Oh, spirits, no, Baatar stop." she felt her face heat up. Why would he think she would have someone over? She quickly walked over to him, grabbing his arm. "I was going to surprise you with something, but as always, I never can. Come, I’ll show you. Don’t laugh at my attempt, okay?"

Baatar smiled as she led him to the guest bedroom. She open the door, gesturing her hands to the bedframe pieces that were on the ground. She got back down on her knees, looking up at him. Baatar had one hand propped under his chin, his smile growing. He was trying hard to stifle a laugh. Kuvira rolled her eyes, but couldn’t help but smile. Baatar walked over, examining the pieces. He knelt down next to Kuvira, looking at the pieces she was trying to put together.

"Those don’t go together." he said immediately without even having to look at the instructions. He looked at her with sweet eyes. "Metal?"

She nodded her head, her heart quickening at the look he was giving her. "I thought it would be familiar to you." she shrugged her shoulders. "I tried to put it together without using my bending, but it became more difficult than I assumed. I wanted to surprise you."

He immediately brought her into a hug. Kuvira had her face pressed against his neck, inhaling his scent. He smelled like oil, something metallic, and his usual cologne. The smell was familiar and reminded her of when they were younger and both lived in Zaofu. His scent always made her feel at home, and it was comforting. He pulled away, looking back down at the pieces. He clapped his hands together.

"Alright, let’s put this bed together then."

Kuvira nodded her head, but her phone began ringing. She left Baatar with the bed, going into her bedroom where she had left her phone before she came to put up Baatar’s bed. She saw that it was Lin. She frowned, answering it immediately.

"Chief, what’s going on?"

"Why are you suggesting that Mako should look into Future Industries?" Lin sounded irritated.

Kuvira sighed heavily, feeling stupid for forgetting that Lin would’ve been able to see Mako trying to request the warrant. She didn’t want Lin to find out, knowing this was how she was going to react. "I . . . I have a hunch that someone working at Future Industries is helping the Equalist. Maybe if we were to find out, we can warn the Sato’s before it blows up in their face."

Lin was quiet for a few minutes. Kuvira had to check if she were still on the phone. Finally, Lin spoke up. "Have you spoken to Asami about this?"

Kuvira frowned. She didn’t want to talk to Asami this because she didn’t want her to get the wrong idea. She wanted to keep this quiet. Hopefully looking into Future Industries will only prove Shady Shin wrong, and will give Kuvira some peace of mind. "No, I haven’t. I don’t want her to worry about anything."

"Alright. I’ll get the warrant myself and look into it myself. I hope you’re wasting my time with this, Kuvira." Lin said. She knew as well as Kuvira knew that if it were true, if someone from Future Industries was supplying the Equalist with weapons and money, it wouldn’t look so good on the company.

"Thank you, Lin."

"Don’t thank me yet." she said, hanging up.

Kuvira sighed heavily, hearing Baatar calling for her in the other room. She closed her eyes, remembering that BB Industries also just recently combined with Future Industries. She didn’t want their company to also go down with them . . . She would have to talk with Baatar about this, but before she did, she needed to know if she even needed to be concerned or not.

Kuvira walked back into the room, seeing the entire bed put together, the mattress even on the bed. She smiled flopping down on the bed immediately. She laughed as she bounced a little. Baatar came sitting down next to her, bouncing slightly on the mattress. Kuvira laughed again when his movements almost made her lose her balance.

"Nice bed." she said.

He nodded stretching. He fell on his back, bringing her down with him. "Oh yeah, this is definitely going to work out." he had one arm around her back, his free hand rested on his stomach.

Kuvira snuggled into him, resting her head on his chest. She could feel her exhausting catching up to her. "I’m glad." she murmured. She always has been able to fall asleep easily in Baatar’s arms, having done it many times. She let out a small yawn, propping herself up on his chest. "We should make the bed, so you can sleep."

Baatar nodded, sitting up when she got off of the bed. In silence, they made the bed, putting the pillows and blankets on it. Kuvira ran her hand over the top of the bed, loving the feeling of the metal. She would have to buy herself a metal bedframe. Baatar stood next to her, his arms folded across his chest. He stared down at her. Kuvira swallowed loudly, suddenly feeling nervous. She twisted her fingers together.

"Thank you for the bed. It was a nice surprise." he said after a few minutes of silence.

She nodded her head. "Well, I want you to feel welcomed here. I want you to . . . feel like this is your home." she frowned slightly at herself. "I just want you to feel comfortable here." she said, finally looking up at him.

Baatar gave her a soft smile. A smile that made Kuvira’s heart beat quickly. Unable to help herself, she reached up on her toes, grabbing her face between her hands, and putting her lips against his. The kiss was quick, Kuvira pulling back as quickly as she had kissed him. She walked away from him, not sure if she can actually handle her embarrassment. _What did you do_? _Are you stupid_? _You’re friends_ , _remember Kuvira_? Baatar looked shocked before she left him. She shut her bedroom door, pressing her back against it. She sighed heavily, shaking her head. _Way to go_ , _Kuvira_. _Now you messed everything up_.

_______________________________

Jinora sat down next to Kai. She knew sneaking him in wasn’t something her father would like, if he knew. He hasn’t really said much about their relationship since he found out. Jinora was unsure if he was happy about it, or upset. She knew keeping it a secret from him for so long wasn’t the best idea, and she regrets it, but all she wants is for her father to be proud of her. She worked hard at airbending, becoming at master at a young age. She worked hard after, helping mentor the new airbenders. She was smart about everything she did, including how she was with Kai. She just wanted her father to _see_ that.

"What are you thinking about right now?" Kai asked her, giving her a soft kiss on her temple.

Jinora sighed lightly, turning to face him. She wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing him. His arms wrapped around her waist, pulling her closer to him. Jinora shifted, never breaking the kiss, sitting on his lap. She ran her fingers through his hair.

"I love you." she tells him.

Kai smiled back at her. "I love you, too."

She goes back to kiss him, letting his lips travel down her jaw and her neck. She closed her eyes, moving her neck so that more skin was exposed for his lips to explore. Her breath hitched in her throat at the feeling. Kai pulled away slightly, to look up at her.

"Are you okay?"

She nodded her head. "Yes." she went to go kiss him again, but he stopped her. She sighed.

"Jinora, I know you’re not okay. What’s going on?" he knew her too well by now to know when something was bothering her. Jinora knew that.

She shifted off of him, grabbing his hands in her own. "I just wish my father would talk to me."

Kai frowned, clearly confused by her words. "What are you talking about? He does talk to you. He just talked to you at dinner."

Jinora sighed again, looking up at him. "No, I mean really _talk_ with me. I want to _feel_ that he’s okay with our relationship. I know you might think it’s stupid for me to want his approval so desperately—"

"Jinora, I don’t think it’s stupid. I think it’s great. If I had parent’s, I’d want them to approve of my relationship too." he gave her hand a tight squeeze. "I’ll do whatever I have too to make him accept me."

Jinora grabbed his face between her hands, frowning slightly. "Kai, he does accept you."

He frowned slightly, shaking his head. "He may like me, but he doesn’t like me with you. I know that." he shrugged. "Maybe it’s because he knows I’m not good enough for you."

Jinora hated when Kai downgraded himself. She knew he had moments where he didn’t feel worthy of even being her friend, let alone her boyfriend. She was so good and so smart, he knew that. Kai had a troubling past. He lied and stole all the time. Jinora had heard all the stories of his past. All the ones he wanted her to know. But ever since he became an airbender, he’s changed and grown up so much. Jinora always felt close to him, always felt like he understood her. Even when they were just kids. Now that they both were adults, it seemed only right to be in a relationship with one another. Jinora was ready, and so was he. Kai would become a master airbender in just a short few years, she knew that for certain. Maybe even sooner. He _is_ good enough for her.

"Kai, don’t say something like that."

Kai shrugged his shoulders, resting on his side. "If I asked you to marry me, would you?"

Jinora’s heart stopped beating. "What?"

Kai shook his head, chuckling at her expression. "I’m _not_ asking. We’re too young for that. But . . . Do you think one day, we would get married?"

Jinora shifted so that she was laying on her stomach next to him. She had herself propped up on her arms. She knew Kai was someone she wanted to spend the rest of her life with. She was mature enough to know that with certainty, but she didn’t want to get married now. She wanted to be with him for a few years, to grow even more, before they were ever married. But would she one day want to be married to him? Want Kai to be her husband? She smiled, nodding her head.

"Yes, I do."

Kai smiled at her. "Alright." he rested his head on her pillow, bringing her into his arms.

Jinora smiled, snuggling in closer to his chest.

________________________________

Tuesday October 15th

Korra was glad to finally be out of the house. The healers said she could walk around, but still nothing too strenuous. She wouldn’t be able to work until the end of this week, but even then, Lin would still have her working the desk. She was so annoyed about this Equalist problem. She wanted it to end. And to top it all off, the White Lotus guards weren’t leaving her alone. Since they failed at protecting her the other night, they were going to make sure it wouldn’t happen again. And to assure that, they were going to have ten guards follow Korra at all times of the day.

Korra was with Opal, having lunch while Asami was going to work for a few hours to help her father and Baatar with something. Korra needed to speak with Hiroshi. Well, she wanted too. Asami doesn’t want her to get involved . . . yet. Korra knows that Asami can handle herself, especially when it comes to her own father, but this was Korra’s expertise. She fought crime. But she understood why Asami was pushing her away from this. Asami was the type of person who felt comfortable being in control. She also knows that her father wouldn’t ever lie to her (hopefully). Asami knew how she was going to approach the situation. Korra, on the other hand, didn’t.

What Korra wanted to do was bring in the entire police force and search every inch of Future Industries. She wanted to shut down this Equalist problem as quickly as possible. But the off chance that Kuvira is wrong, and Future Industries isn’t helping the Equalist . . . Well, that would just make Hiroshi hate Korra even more than he already does.

"Korra, are you okay? You haven’t even touched your food."

Korra snapped out of her thoughts, nodding her head. "Sorry, I wasn’t paying attention. What were you saying?" Korra shoved a mouthful of noddles into her mouth.

Opal chuckled, shaking her head. "I think Bolin is going to propose to me."

Korra’s eyes widened. She smiled. "How do you know that?"

Opal shrugged her shoulders. "I just have a _feeling_. He’s been acting weird lately. He’s more nervous around me." she rolled her eyes, smiling. "Bolin could never keep secrets from me. I don’t know why he still tries."

The thought of Bolin and Opal getting married really settled well with Korra. It was the light in the currently dark tunnel she was traveling through. She wanted this. Good things to happen in her life, not bad things. She would love to see Bolin and Opal marry. I mean, it’s about time. They’ve been together for so long and have acted like a married couple since they first got together. Korra just hoped she could stop this Equalist problem so that it is safe for Bolin and Opal to get married.

"Su would march all the way down here once she finds out her precious daughter is finally getting married." Korra said with a laugh.

Opal nodded. She knew her mother well enough to know Su would tear down everything just to make her way out here and hear all the details and see the ring. "She probably thought Kuvira would get married first. But Baatar never asked, though he always carried a ring around with him." she shrugged her shoulders lightly.

Korra almost spit the food in her mouth out. Her eyes went wide. " _What_? Kuvira almost married Baatar?" Korra knew they had something going on, but never something as serious as an almost engagement. Kuvira never spoke about Baatar to her before.

Opal nodded her head slowly, looking guilty. "I thought Kuvira told you." she inhaled lightly. "Yeah, well, she and Baatar were in a relationship since Kuvira was sixteen. They ended things when Kuvira moved out here." she shrugged again. "You coming tonight to the Probending match?"

Korra didn’t quite understand why Kuvira would keep this information from Korra. They told each other everything. Relationships were always a weird topic with Kuvira, but Korra just assumed it was because Kuvira was awkward with relationships. Korra would have to hash that out later with Kuvira. She nodded her head. "I feel bad for missing the opening."

Opal frowned, shaking her head. "Korra, you were healing. You _still_ are. We’re just glad you’re okay. Bolin was going to cancel the opening."

"I’m glad he didn’t. I’m fine now." she forced a small smile on her face. "I’ll definitely be there tonight." Korra’s phone vibrated in her pocket. It was Lin. "Chief?"

"Why are you outside of your bedroom? You’re supposed to be recovering, Korra."

Korra’s eyes went wide and her cheeks began heating up. She scanned the area, not seeing anyone familiar. She frowned. "How do you know—"

"I _have_ eyes everywhere, Korra." she could picture Lin rolling her eyes. "Just get home before you get hurt again. You don’t want to let the Equalist see that you’re still injured."

" _Or_ they can see how well I am recovering." Korra rolled her eyes. Opal just shook her head, stifling laughter.

"Don’t make me drag your ass back home myself." Lin threatened. "Listen, the Equalist are planning another rally this afternoon and I don’t want you to cross paths with them, you hear me?"

Korra rolled her eyes, frowning. "Fine. I’ll go home." she said, sighing.

Lin paused for a moment. "Give the phone to Opal."

Korra’s frown deepened as she handed her phone over to a confused Opal. Opal nodded her head, getting a "yes ma’am" in there a few times. She hung up, handing the phone back to Korra. She smiled, grabbing Korra’s hand gently.

"Aunt Lin just wanted me to make sure you made it home in one piece."

Korra groaned heavily. "She is seriously going to drive me insane."

"But she does have a point, Korra. You are hurt. The Equalist tried to kill you. And now they’re just getting stronger and more supporters. The last thing you want to do right now is get caught up with them, you know? We’re just all looking out for your safety."

Korra sighed, nodding her head. She knew her friends worried about her. Korra was the avatar and the avatar was a continuous target. She didn’t want them to worry about her, though. She was the most powerful person in the world. She can take care of herself. The last thing she wanted was her friends getting hurt trying to protect her.

_____________________________

Lin was watching the news, making sure the rally stayed calm. She had her officers out there, ready to stop the rally if anything became violent. The benders in Republic City weren’t okay with what’s been going on. They don’t know what Amon can do, but they don’t need to to be upset. Some benders were protesting the non-benders, which made Lin more frustrated. She had to stop it. But if she stopped the benders, she would look like she was supporting the non-benders. And if she stopped the non-benders, she would look like she’s supporting the benders. There was no win-win. She could always stop both, which is something she was planning on doing.

Kuvira was out there, along with Saikhan. Lin would be going there soon, but she needed to meet up with Tenzin first. With Amon being able to take bending away, she knew the airbenders would be the first on his list next to the avatar. She needed Tenzin to be warned so that he can keep his guard up. Lin already had so many things to worry about, the last thing she wanted to worry about is Tenzin and the airbenders. He came walking into her office with Kya behind him. Lin froze momentarily, staring at Kya. _Why was she here_?

"Lin, you wanted to speak with me?" Tenzin asks.

Lin moved her eyes from Kya to Tenzin, nodding her head. "I just wanted to give you a warning. These Equalist are no joke, Tenzin. They might be planning an attack on the airbenders."

Tenzin frowned, nodding his head. "I’ve been on guard even since Korra was attacked." his frown deepened at that. "Thank you, Lin. I’ll make sure to keep everyone on high alert."

Lin folded her arms across her chest. She stared back at Kya. "Nice to see you here, Kya."

Kya nodded her head, smiling over at Lin. "When I heard of what’s going on, I came down as quickly as I could—"

"And as it’s always nice to see you, Kya, you should’ve called first. Things are not as bad as they seem." Tenzin said.

Kya rolled her eyes. "They almost killed Korra, Tenzin, I think things are getting bad." her smile returned when she looked over at Lin. "Are you working tonight? I was think you and I could spend some time together to . . . catch up."

Lin could feel her face heating up. She wanted Kya to stop talking, especially while her older brother, and Lin’s ex-boyfriend was present. But Tenzin was so oblivious. Lin cleared her throat, glancing over at the news which was still live-broad-casting the rally. "If everything goes well today, I will be off tonight."

"That’s good. Kya needs to get off of Air Temple Island before she drives me crazy." Tenzin huffed.

Kya elbowed him. "Admit it baby brother, you _love_ me being here." she winked at him.

Tenzin straightened out. "Well, as long as Bumi doesn’t randomly show up, I suppose your presence isn’t necessarily awful." he nodded once at Lin. "Keep in touch, Lin. If you hear anything new, please tell me."

"Same for you, Tenzin." Lin said, waving them goodbye. She was glad Kya only gave her a smile before leaving. Anymore words, and Lin might’ve had to bend metal over her mouth just to shut her up.

Lin walked over to her desk, sitting down. She was gathering everything to get ready to go down to the rally. Everything seemed peaceful enough, especially since Amon wasn’t leading this rally. But Lin knew what they were really about. They were violent people. Taking people’s bending away, trying to kill the avatar. The Equalist in custody hasn’t spoken a word, but they’re still being interrogated. If Lin could handle it her way, she’s torture the answers out of them. But she had to follow the law. Her radio crackled alive. She could hear Amon’s voice covered by a light layer of static.

" _This is a message to all the benders out there: your time of bending is coming to a short end. Non-benders will rise, and soon, everyone will finally be equal. The failed attempt at the Avatar’s life was a warning. Don’t underestimate us. Just because we cannot manipulate the elements, does not mean we cannot fight. There is a war coming. And to end with another warning, anyone who attends the Probending match tonight will meet their final end. Think very carefully about what you choose to do next_. _A peaceful surrender to me will ensure your life._ "

Lin’s hands balled her hands up into fists as she saw the people on the news begin to react to the message violently. Her phone began ringing.

"Chief, we need you down here." it was Kuvira.

"I’ll be there in five." Lin growled. She dialed Bolin’s number.

"Hello? Chief Beifong?"

"Cancel all the games tonight, Bolin. No questions about it." she said before quickly hanging up.

She had it just about up to here with Amon and his Equalist bullshit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You guys can check out my blog kuviraforevergirl on tumblr. I'm complete kuvira trash and post a lot of korrasami. Thank you to all that have been reading this story so far!


	8. But It's Better If You do

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lin was angry
> 
> Baatar was unsure
> 
> Korra was lucky
> 
> Asami was lost
> 
> Kuvira was nervous

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry Salami Satobot. It only gets worst for you from here... Enjoy *evil laughter*

Tuesday October 15th (cont)

By the time Lin showed up to the rally, it had gotten worst. Benders and non-benders were fighting with one another. Most fights were verbal, but there were a few physical fights. People were throwing things. Most of the things being thrown were trash; cans, paper bags, bottles. Mostly thrown by the non-benders. Lin just wanted to make sure no bender used their bending on anyone. That’ll just make this all worst.

With Lin’s presence, the fighting was cooling down. She saw Kuvira and another officer of hers pin down a few violent aggressors. Saikhan was putting a few people in a police car, ordering for them to go to the jail. Her officers had things under control, something she was happy about. She trained them all well.

She scanned the area, trying to find the person who was the leader of this specific rally. She wasn’t about to let them get away that easy. Her eyes stopped when she saw a scared looking man trying to duck beneath people, trying to leave unnoticed. She narrowed her eyes, letting out her metal cable, grabbing him by the arm. He spun around, letting out a small yelp.

"Just the person I was looking for."

"Ah, Chief Beifong, such a pleasure to see you!" he was sweating.

"I’m glad you feel that way, because you’re going to see me a lot. Where is Amon hiding?" Lin knew Amon sent these people out to protest to be a distraction. She knew he was planning something— _and he was_! Tonight, if people went to the Probending match, he would hurt them. She wasn’t about to let him have leadership in _her_ city.

The man shook his head, sweating even more nervously. "I don’t know what you’re talking about Chief—"

Lin rolled her eyes, turning towards Saikhan. "Saikhan! Take him back with you. Put him in a cell by himself. Get people there to interrogate him." she ordered.

Saikhan nodded, grabbing the man from her and taking him to his police car. The rally was dying down now. Everyone was ordered to go home. But this won’t be the last rally. Lin knew that. With every rally she stopped, another broke out. These rally don’t really worry her, though. Unless they’re violent, but still, it wasn’t anything she knew she couldn’t handle herself. What worried her was Amon. Not only could he take people’s bending away, but he was making bold threats. She didn’t like that. Not one bit. And to top all of that off, she was going to search through Future Industries. Of course, she’s going to make it a very private search, but it still bothered her nonetheless.

Kuvira walked over to her. She had pieces of her hair stuck to her forehead. "Chief, I heard Amon’s threat on the radio. What do you want us to do?"

Lin frown over at her. "I already called Bolin to cancel the matches tonight."

Kuvira frowned at that, but nodded her hair. "Should we also make a public statement ordering people to not attend it? They’ll listen more if they hear it from you, Chief."

Lin folded her arms across her chest. The last thing she wanted was for anyone to worry. She didn’t want to cancel the games tonight, but she knew they weren’t worth the safety of her citizens. Another part of her didn’t want to back down because she wasn’t about to let Amon think she’s surrendering to him. It frustrated her.

"Yeah, I’ll make a statement when I get back to the sation. Clear out!" she order to everyone else, shaking her head.

_What was she going to do_?

_______________________________

Baatar had his hands deep inside the engine of Satomobile. He hadn’t ever worked with machinery of this type, but he’s always been curious to how they made their cars. He’s worked with trains, and even airships before, but never cars. Hiroshi was guiding him step-by-step on how to take the engine apart, and put it all back together. Doing this reminded him of working with his own father. He missed home.

"You’re a natural at this. Just like my daughter, Asami." Hiroshi said proudly.

Baatar wiped his forehead with the back of his hand. "Thank you."

Hiroshi folded his arms across his chest. "I wish Asami could meet someone like you. You’re not a bender, are you?"

Baatar’s eyes widened slightly at his first words. Wasn’t Asami with Korra? Why would he suggest . . . Baatar didn’t want to get into that, and was thankful Hiroshi asked him something else. He nodded his head. "No, I am not a bender."

Hiroshi shook his head slightly at that. "Must be hard coming from a family filled with many excellent benders."

Baatar shrugged his shoulders. "I suppose it could get annoying at times, but I can create things they all can’t. But it has never been a competition in my family. We’re all equals." it used to bother him when he was growing up, not being able to bend. Especially when Kuvira came in the picture and became his mother’s prodigy. And then when Opal got her airbending . . . But he never felt any less than them, and they never made him feel any less.

Hiroshi snorted at that, shaking his head. " _Equals_. Benders _don_ ’ _t_ treat us like equals. They act like they’re better than us. Like _we_ ’ _re_ the weak ones." his father suddenly was filled with sadness. "They’re dangerous, Baatar. Did you know my wife was killed by a firebender?"

Baatar frowned, shaking his head. "No. I’m sorry that happened."

Hiroshi sighed heavily. "Me too. Benders . . . they just don’t know how dangerous they could be. I wish we lived in a world where we all were equal, wouldn’t you agree?"

Baatar shook his head. "Anyone could be dangerous, benders or not." he shrugged his shoulders. "Benders help, though. We work together and make an excellent team. Look at all the things that were built. Benders helped with that."

Hiroshi looked slightly disappointed, which confused Baatar. But the look went away as soon as it came. "Back in Zaofu, did you make any weapons for your security force?"

Baatar shook his head. "We didn’t have too. Everyone working as a guard are earthbenders."

Hiroshi nodded his head slowly. "Come, I want to show you something." he walked over to a table on the other side of the room, grabbing his briefcase he left over there. Hiroshi opened it, pulling out a glove. He handed it over to Baatar. "Try it on."

Baatar put the metal glove on his left hand, seeing a spark come from the middle. He flexed his fingers. It was very well designed. The voltage probably wouldn’t be able to kill someone, but definitely cause some great injuries. It didn’t look like a weapon. That’s what Baatar liked about it. An element of surprise was always helpful. "This is amazing." he flexed his fingers again.

Hiroshi smiled. "I think so too. I want to try to heighten the voltage. Make it more . . . _lethal_."

Baatar frowned slightly. "What are these used for?"

Hiroshi shrugged his shoulders. "Nothing right now. But maybe they could be used to help the police force here. And maybe they’ll spread around the country, and even places like Zaofu will have them. So non-benders could protect themselves."

Baatar nodded his head. "May I see what I can do with this glove?"

Hiroshi nodded his head. "Of course, Baatar. But don’t tell anyone about it. I don’t like to unveil my work until it’s fully complete."

Baatar nodded his head, smiling. "I am the same way, so I understand." he stared down at the glove. He could probably be able to change the settings of the electric voltage and make it more lethal. He has never created a weapon before, so this was going to be exciting. Also, a good distraction. Things have been . . . awkward between him and Kuvira since she kissed him. And they haven’t spoken or really saw each other since. They were avoiding each other, and he wished they weren’t. They’ll have to talk about it soon, but for now, he was glad to have an excuse to be busy.

______________________________

Korra and Opal stopped by at Opal’s home since she got a call from Bolin saying that he was going to cancel the games. Korra and Opal heard the threat from Amon. It pissed her off that Amon would make such a threat. But what pissed her off even more is that Lin was actually listening to him. Healing or not, she was ready to kick some ass.

"I was really excited for these games too." Bolin sighed, resting his face in his hands.

Opal rubbed his back. "It’s okay, Bo. The safety of these people are more important."

Bolin sighed. "But that’s the thing, Opal. I don’t want people to think they’re not safe at my arena. We all felt safe when Toza ran it."

"Well that’s because Toza didn’t have to deal with Equalist." Korra folded her arms over her chest. "Don’t cancel it, Bolin."

Bolin and Opal both looked up at her, frowning. "But Lin—"

Korra waved her hand through the air. "Yeah, yeah, I know what Lin said. But she’s wrong to cancel the games. We benders, and non-benders who don’t hate us, have to stick together and show Amon we’re not afraid." the thing was, Korra was afraid. He was after her. And she knew what he could do. But she was tired of being scared. She wasn’t going to let him win.

Bolin looked unsure. "I don’t know, Korra . . . Lin would get really mad. And who would even show up?"

Korra shook her head. "Don’t worry about it, Bolin. I’ll go talk to Lin about it right now. These games are happening tonight." she was walking towards the door. Opal ran after her.

"Korra, wait, you need to go home and rest. Lin is going to be upset with seeing you."

Korra snorted, grinning at Opal. "I have to pick something up at the sation anyway. Don’t worry about Lin, Op. I got this." Opal let Korra go, even though she looked very unsure.

Korra marched her way to the police station, wishing she had brought her car. Opal drove her to lunch, and was supposed to drive her back home. She’ll have to get a ride from someone else. Maybe Asami is almost done with her work and can pick her up at the station. As Korra walked into the station, she’d be lying if she wasn’t nervous. Lin was going to be upset to see her. And Korra didn’t enjoy being yelled at by Lin.

"Korra what the hell." Kuvira walked in front of her, stopping her. "Do you have a death wish?" she smirked at her.

Korra grinned. "I have to speak with Lin. It’s important."

"Well, she’s a little busy getting a public statement ready to cancel the Probending matches tonight." Kuvira folded her arms across her chest, sighing. "It’s been a long day. I wish you were back to work already."

Korra frowned, throwing her arms in the air. "That’s what I want to speak to Lin about! We can’t cancel the games."

Kuvira frowned at Korra. "We have too. It’s not worth the risk, Korra."

Korra sighed heavily. She wasn’t surprised to see Kuvira siding with Lin. She knew how dangerous Amon could be. "Kuvira, we can’t let him . . . let him put fear into us. We have to be stronger than him. Going to the match, benders and non-benders coming together, that’ll show him that he . . . that he won’t win this."

Kuvira sighed heavily. "You’re right."

Korra’s eyes widened. She smiled. "So you’ll help me convince Lin?"

Kuvira looked pained. She groaned heavily. "Fine, but I swear you’re taking full blame of this if she gets mad." Kuvira shook her head. "I mean, _when_ she gets mad."

"Ah, don’t tell me you’ve grown soft on me. I thought you weren’t afraid of Lin?" Korra teased.

Kuvira shook her head. "Lin has grown more cold, okay? I already crossed her once with the search warrant, I don’t want to do that again."

Korra frowned slightly. "How’s that going by the way?"

Kuvira shrugged her shoulders. "I don’t know. Lin took over and she hasn’t spoken to me about to since Sunday. Has Asami said anything about Future Industries that might cause suspicion?"

Korra wanted to tell Kuvira yes, and that searching through Future Industries was a good thing to do, but she didn’t want to say anything about it. She knew if Lin searched through Future Industries, she’ll find out the truth soon enough. This worried Korra, because she knows that it’ll hurt Asami. And also because she really didn’t want confirmation that Hiroshi was trying to kill her. It was already bad enough knowing he hated her.

 

"No. And I hope Lin doesn’t find anything either." she sighed lightly, stopping outside of Lin’s office. Her nerves returned.

"Okay maybe we shouldn’t do this." Kuvira was nervous as well.

Korra forced herself to grin. "Come on you baby, it’s just Lin."

_____________________________

Asami walked into her father’s office, shutting the door quickly behind her. She was clutching the bag around her shoulder. He was sitting at his desk, surprised to see her barge in so abruptly. But he looked happy to see her nonetheless. His face faltered when he saw Asami’s expression. She slowly walked closer to his desk, but didn’t sit down. She hated feeling this rift between her and him . . . she hated feeling afraid of him. She inhaled deeply, unzipping her bag. She grabbed the glove, throwing it on top of his desk.

"Dad, please tell me you’re not helping the Equalist."

His expression turned cold at the sight of the glove. He stared up from the glove to Asami. "Where did you get this?"

"Don’t ignore the question!" she yelled. Her could feel herself shaking. "Please tell me you aren’t working for the Equalist. Please tell me you didn’t try to kill Korra while we were gone." she could feel her headache from earlier returning.

Hiroshi still wore a cold expression. He stood up, putting his hands behind his back. His quick movements cause Asami to flinch. "Don’t be stupid, Asami. I didn’t raise you to be so naive. You know the answer already, so why ask?"

Asami’s eyes burned threatening to spill tears. "W-why, Dad?" she chocked out. "I love her! Why can’t you just accept that."

Hiroshi slammed his hands on his desk. "You have so much potential, Asami, and you’re throwing it away on that bender who doesn’t even really care about you in the first place. I am trying to protect you, Asami!"

She shook her head, anger boiling inside of her. "Korra is not using me." she felt tears begin to escape her eyes, running down her cheeks. As much as she felt so much anger towards her father, he was still her father. She still loved him. "They’re going to search Future Industries."

Hiroshi’s eyes widened. "Who?"

"Chief Beifong." she pulled out the warrant out of her bag. She had intercepted it, not going to show him at all. She was going to have them expose her father, but . . . But she couldn’t just throw him under the bus. She placed it on his desk.

He looked more angry than he did moments ago if that was even possible. Asami wiped her eyes, inhaling a shaky breath. Her eyes went to a picture of him, her mother, and her. It was the last picture they ever took together as a family. She was so happy back then. Her eyes went to another picture of her and him from a few years back to when she first built her own Satomoble. That was one of her favorite memories of them both together. They were so close, especially after the death of her mother. It had always been just the two of them.

But then she grew up, and she made friends that weren’t people who worked for her father. They were genuine friends. Life long friends. And now her family. And then she met Korra and everything changed. She found not only her best friend, but her soul mate. And now her father was trying to kill the love of her life, and he was working with the enemy. All of her friends were benders. They were all in danger.

"Dad, I don’t know what’s made you so hateful, but I am begging you to stop this. For me." she inhaled deeply. "I love you, dad." she walked out of his office before she could cry again, and before he could response. She needed to get away from him.

The worst part about this is how guilty she felt. Korra is going to be so upset with her for helping her father. She knows he’s going to hide all the evidence connecting to the Equalist. _What have I done_?

_____________________________

"Wow I _can_ ’ _t_ believe Lin actually _agreed_ with _you_." Kuvira said, still unsure if what really happened in Lin’s office actually . . . _happened_. Korra walked in so smart and didn’t even flinch when Lin yelled at her. Kuvira didn’t even need to step in, Korra handled herself perfectly. Even Lin seemed impressed at the end. Kuvira knew it wasn’t easy to convince Lin to do _anything_ she originally didn’t want to do. But Korra managed to do it. Kuvira could be in love with her at that moment.

Korra shrugged her shoulders, wearing a smug grin. "What can I say, when I’m right, I’m just right. You know?"

Kuvira shook her head, her moment of ‘in love with Korra’ over. "I hope you realize that if things go bad tonight, you’re going to most likely be fired."

Korra’s smile faded. "Yeah, you’re right. And Lin will enjoy doing it, too." she shrugged her shoulders. "But I’m glad the matches are still on."

Kuvira shook her head again. She didn’t understand why Korra was so presistent on these matches actually happening tonight. It wasn’t going to hurt anyone if they canceled them . . . actually, it might save a few lives if they _do_ cancel them. Kuvira was never into Probending, so to her it seemed stupid to keep the matches going with the threat they received from Amon.

"Nothing bad will happen, Kuvira." Korra said at her silence.

Kuvira shrugged her shoulders, forcing a small grin. "Too bad you won’t be there to see what happened."

Korra’s eyebrows pushed together. She folded her arms across her chest. "Who says I’m not going?"

Kuvira held the screwdriver in her hand, looking away from her front door lock over to Korra, who sat on her couch. "I don’t know— me. Lin. Asami. You’re still healing, remember?" she focused back on the lock. "Besides, it’s best if you weren’t there. One less thing to worry about."

"Oh come on!" she could see Korra throw her arms in the air behind her. "Eighty-five-percent of the police force will be there. I’ll be more safe there than anywhere else."

Kuvira rolled her eyes, fighting a smile. "You really think Asami is going to let you go?"

"What is Asami going to do?"

Kuvira looked up from the lock, seeing both Asami and Baatar. Kuvira immediately felt her cheeks redden. It was awkward to be around Baatar ever since she kissed him. Stupid her. She didn’t mean too, and now she regrets ever doing it. They haven’t spoken a word to one another since Sunday, yet they live together. It has been very uncomfortable for Kuvira, and she knew Baatar was trying to avoid her too. They both planned their schedules to clash with one another so they barely saw each other. She missed him, though. And wished they could just forget the kiss ever happened.

Her eyes went back over to Asami who was now standing in her livingroom in front of Korra. She had her hands placed on her hips, staring down at a pouting Korra. Kuvira noticed something a little off in Asami’s appearance. She looked like she was either have bad allergies, or she’d been crying. Kuvira wouldn’t ask about it, though. It was none of her business, and if something _was_ wrong with Asami, Korra would take care of it. She always does. Korra smiled up at her, grabbing her hands.

"Hey, would you like to attend a Probending match with me tonight? Bolin really wants you to come, since you did help him redo the arena."

Asami’s eyebrows pushed together slightly, but she was smiling. "I haven’t been to a match since it reopened, so maybe _I_ should attend the games tonight. _You_ on the other hand need to rest."

Korra instantly frowned again, which made Kuvira laugh. She narrowed her eyes over at her. "C’mon Asami, I won’t do anything crazy. Besides . . . Where would I stay?" she said the last part in a whispered tone. Kuvira hardly caught it.

Asami smiled despite the sadness in her eyes. "Air Temple Island, of course."

"Oh, that’s a good place. No safer place than there." Kuvira agreed, metalbending the lock off of her door and setting it down on the floor next to her. She picked up the platinum lock, opening it up. She stared at it for a moment, wondering how she was supposed to put it on. She wasn’t good with stuff like this, which bothered her. She personally liked to excel at anything and everything she did.

"Want me to do it?" Baatar asked quietly, his cheeks reddening. He was leaning against the wall near her.

Kuvira nodded her head, not even looking at him. She set the lock down, standing up. "Thank you." she said quietly, turning her attention to Korra and Asami. "You’ll hear all about the matches on the radio anyway."

Korra slumped her shoulders. "This is _so_ unfair. I _am_ going. I may be healing, but I’m stronger than the two of you put together." with that, she flexed her arms.

"I’ll babysit you myself, Korra, don’t test me." Kuvira threatened. She knew Korra wanted to attend the matches tonight, but that wasn’t a smart idea. If Amon still goes through with his threat, Korra would be his first target. She needed to keep herself safe.

"Maybe you should let her go." it was Baatar this time. He was just finishing up with the lock, testing it out. He glanced over at them, the three of them wearing shocked expressions.

Korra smiled. "See, I like you. You understand me." she walked over to him, putting her arm around his waist. She pointed two fingers at Asami and Kuvira. "You two need to take notes."

Baatar shrugged his shoulders. "If the, uh Equalist, see that the arena is heavily guarded, and that the avatar isn’t there, they will go searching for her. If we’re talking about our safest option for Korra, it would be to attend the match tonight."

"But if they find out she is at the arena, they will attack." Kuvira countered.

"But she’ll be more protected." he said.

Kuvira frowned slightly. He had a point, though. If there were talking about Korra’s safety, she would be best guarded at the arena. Kuvira knew the Equalist were after her. If they sent Korra to Air Temple Island and Amon found that out, he would attack the entire island not only hurting Korra, but also hurting the airbenders. Korra would be safer at the arena with all the police force there, no doubt about it. She sighed heavily. Asami sighed too.

"Baatar is right. Korra you can come, but I swear if you do anything reckless—"

"I won’t, I won’t!" Korra said, waving her off. She was smiling. Clearly she was pleased to have gotten her way _twice_ today.

* * *

Kuvira had just scanned the arena for the twentieth time, going to her post. She stood near the podium where Korra, Asami, Bolin, and Opal where at. Lin was ten feet to her right. Saikhan was ten feet to her left. She was nervous. So far, everything was okay. A lot of people showed up, and the games were getting great reaction. Nobody seemed to be afraid. That was a good sign. Kuvira didn’t want anyone to be afraid.

She firmly placed her hands behind her back, her eyes scanning the crowd. There were so many people, some faces blended in with each other. She narrowed her eyes, sighing heavily. There was nothing to worry about. The entire arena was guarded. There were ships in the water surrounded it, airships in the air, and police force inside. There was no way any Equalist could sneak in. Not with their weapons, at least. But that didn’t stop the chi blockers. Kuvira shuddered lightly.

_Everything will be okay_. She had to tell herself over and over again.

"That was a foul!" she heard Bolin scream behind her. She smiled, rolling her eyes. She still didn’t understand the necessity of this game.

She saw Mako across from her on the other side of the arena. He gave her a small wave. She gave him a nod back. She put her hands down to her sides, unclenching her fists. Blood quickly rushed to her hand. She didn’t realize how tightly she was squeezing them. It was her nerves. She felt like this before, when she was first a guard at Zaofu. And then again when she became captain. And then again when she became a police officer. She usually was good at controlling her emotions, but something just didn’t feel right to her.

One of the matches were over, putting the blue team ahead of the red. At least, that’s what Kuvira thought. She wasn’t really paying attention to the game. She inhaled deeply, the lights flickering on and off. She frowned heavily, hearing Lin order someone to check on the lights through her radio. That bad feeling she had grew. _Something wasn’t right_. She quickly turned around, right as someone touched her shoulder. Her body jolted, falling to the ground. She twitched, her muscles clenching and unclenching. _Shit_.

She could see Amon rise from the platform in the middle of the arena, with Equalist by his side. She weakly began pushing herself off of the ground, her hair in her face. She glanced behind her, not seeing Korra. She slammed her fist in the ground, groaning heavily. She turned to see where Lin was and couldn’t see her also. She got to her feet, pausing when she saw Amon take the bending of a player away. Everyone in the audience froze. She could hear a collective gasps, and whimpers. The player dropped to the floor just like the other seven benders had when he took their bending away. He turned to the crowd, holding a microphone.

 

"I believe I have your attention benders of Republic City. The days you spend threatening and abusing your fellow nonbending citizens, ends tonight." he voice rang through the entire arena, making Kuvira’s hair on her arms stand up. "It’ll only take me a few moments to cleanse you of your impurities. Let this be a warning to any bender out there; if you stand in my way, you’ll share the same fate as this fool." he gestured to the fallen player. "To my fellow supporters, the Equalist were forced to stay in the shadows. But now we have the power and strength to create a new Republic City. It’s time to take back our city! For centuries, benders have possessed an unnecessary advantage over us, but thankfully technology has improved for us and now everyone can have the power of chi blocking in their hands." he lifts up his glove in the air, making a fist. A shock of electricity came from it. "We _will_ equalize this city. And we _will_ equalize the rest of the world. _The revolution has begun_!"

With that, rope fell from the ceiling, and he was being brought up by it. Kuvira saw Korra going after him. Lin following after her. She saw Mako and Saikhan arresting a few Equalist. She saw Bolin and Opal helping the players on the stage. Kuvira sighed heavily, metalbending her cable to Lin’s, pulling herself along with them. She wasn’t going to let Amon get away. When they got on the roof, they were greeted by more Equalist. Amon was lifted into an airship, vanishing from her view. Korra was still going after him, while Lin and Kuvira handled the Equalist on the roof. She ducked, swinging her leg from under his feet. She metalbent metal around his wrist and ankles, metalbending him to the ground as she saw Korra firebend at the airship Amon was in. It was no use, though. He was going to get away. She knew that.

Lin pushed her down when an Equalist came to grab her. Kuvira rolled on her back, kicking herself up. She jumped on the guys back, flipping him over on the ground. He landed on his back with a thud. She metalbent him to the ground. Korra was now helping them fight, but she didn’t look so hot. She was limping and Kuvira could see blood on the side of her face. Amon’s airship was almost out of sight now. She groaned heavily, sending a punch through one of the Equalists mask. She heard cracking and grinned.

___________________________

Hiroshi shook his head. "You’re public enemy number one, Amon. You take one step outside and they won’t hesitate to kill you." he was angry that Amon showed such stupidity at the Probending match tonight. Publicly showing everyone he could take bending away . . . Yes, he wanted people to fear them, but they had plans. And Amon didn’t follow them. Now everything was messed up.

Amon slammed his fist on the table. "I am done hiding in the shadows. It’s time for us to rise, Hiroshi. We’ve got all the supporters and supplies. Now all we have to do is take down the avatar!"

"And how do you suppose we do that?" Hiroshi yelled, standing up. "You don’t think she is the most protected person right now? You’re not thinking, Amon." he turned to the Lieutenant as he walked into the room. "Did you handle it?"

The Lieutenant nodded his head. "Everything from Future Industries that ties with the Equalist are gone, sir."

Hiroshi nodded his head once, turning back to Amon. "You _will_ remain in the shadows for now. Let’s let things calm before we plan our final attack against the city. Understand?"

Amon clenched his fist together, but nodded his head. "And the avatar?"

"Leave _that_ to me." Hiroshi had plans for what he was going to do about the avatar. None of those involved keeping her alive. Asami would understand. He knew she would.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have something very *cough* smutty(ish) *cough* planned for the next chapter so get your shipping pants on because every couple is going to get some. I'm in a good mood about the comics. Go to my tumblr page (kuviraforevergirl) if you haven't heard.


	9. Anything, Anything

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mako has a date
> 
> Opal gets a surprise
> 
> Jinora is ready
> 
> Lin is . . . relaxing
> 
> Korra has doubts
> 
> Kuvira is bold

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SO MUCH FLUFF YOU'RE WELCOME SHIPPERS  
> There is a soundtrack to each scene (except for Mako, sorry)  
> Bopal: Light and Atlantic by Sleeping At Last  
> Kainora: Venus by Sleeping At Last and Love Of My Life by Queen  
> Kyalin: Everlong by Foo Fighters (acoustic version)  
> Korrasami: Anything, Anything by Drama Rama  
> Baavira: So Cold by Ben Cocks, Light Sleeping At Last, and Blue Jay Way the Across The Universe version (also the song that Kuvira dances too in my head was Rhiannon by Fleetwood Mac)

Friday October 18th

Mako sat nervously in his chair, playing with the cloth napkin. He scanned the room for what felt like the hundredth time. He was debating on leaving. His date was late. Ten minutes late. Maybe she stood him up. He also couldn’t stand the sad look the waitress gave him every time she asked if his guest arrived, and he answered not yet.

He inhaled deeply, shaking his head. He knew asking a girl he barely knew on a date would end in up a disaster. He had met the girl at his usual café, deciding that he would be brave and ask if she would accompany him to dinner. And finally, after working hard for the last couple of days, he managed to get the night off so he could attend his own date. But there was no date. He was stood up, and it angered him. He could be working right now.

Mako stood up, throwing the napkin on the table. He turned around abruptly, bumping into someone. He froze, seeing the girl. She was on the ground, though, picking up the contents in her purse that fell. Mako felt his cheeks heat up. He dropped to the ground, helping her pick up her stuff. He grabbed her arm, helping her off of the ground. She nervously tuck a dark strand of her behind her ear, her bright gray eyes staring up at him.

"I’m _so_ sorry I’m late. I had to close the diner, but this one customer wouldn’t leave. I . . . I wasn’t standing you up." she swallowed nervously.

Mako pulled out her chair, waiting for her to sit down before he pushed it back in. He sat down, feeling all his angry dissipate at the sight of her. A smile slowly appeared on his face. "Don’t worry about it. You’re here now."

There was awkward silence that Mako wanted to break. He wanted to tell her how beautiful she looks, but the words wouldn’t leave his tongue. She was toying her with napkin earlier, just like he was when he was waiting for her. He was about to say something when the waitress came up, looking happy to see he was no longer alone.

"Ready to order something to drink?" she asked in her chipper tone.

Jin was looking over her menu. She looked up at the waitress. "Coffee would be great, actually."

Mako smiled at that. He, also, could drink coffee at any hour of the day. That’s because his unpredictable work schedule would sometimes keep him up for hours. He turned to the waitress. "I’d like coffee and a water."

She smiled, noting it down. "I’ll be right back with it."

Mako turned to Jin. "Thank you for coming on a date with me. I know we hardly know each other, so I would’ve understood if you didn’t show up."

Jin gave him a sweet smile. "Don’t be ridiculous. I’m just happy you asked me. You’ve probably had such a busy schedule since the attack at the arena, so I’m glad you were able to take some time off . . ." she frowned slightly. "Sorry, I didn’t mean to mention something so . . . negative on a first date."

Mako shook his head. "No, my work isn’t negative to me. Sure, it’s not pleasant what happened, but it’s my work. I love doing it." the attack had left everyone so busy, but things have been uncomfortably calm the last couple of days. "I just want this rift between benders and non-benders to end." he sighed, shaking his head.

Jin nodded her head. "Me too, Mako. It’s caused a lot of drama at work. Some people are refusing to serve benders, and some are refusing to serve non-benders." she sighed. "As a non-bender myself, I find this dispute between the benders and non-benders to be ridiculous. Why can’t we just get along the way we used too?"

Mako snorted. "Not like we really ever got along to begin with. There has always been tension between benders and non-benders."

She smiled at him. "There’s not any tension between you and I."

He returned her smile. "You’re right."

She leaned forward. "So tell me, what’s the most exciting case you’ve ever gotten?"

Mako inhaled lightly, leaning back in his chair. This date didn’t seem half bad after all.

_________________________

Opal began the bath, feeling the water to make sure it was the right temperature. She was exhausted from the last couple of days. They have not been easy. All of the airbenders volunteered to help rebuild the damages the Equalist created when they attacked the arena a few days ago. It had been nonstop work, but they were almost done. Everything was looking the way it used too, which made her happy to see.

What made her most happy was to see Bolin in high spirits again. The attacked cause him to go into a slump. He gathered all the players, giving them all a talk about what happened. What he couldn’t fix was the player who got their bending taken away by . . . by that _monster_. Opal shook her head at the awful memory. She hadn’t realized how strong the Equalist were. She didn’t know Amon could take bending away. She thought that was only a . . . an avatar thing. But she saw it with her own eyes. She’d be lying if she said she didn’t have nightmares about the event.

She heard Bolin walk into their apartment. She jumped from the bathroom floor, walking out to greet him. He gave her a tired smile when he saw her. She wrapped her arms around his waist, giving him a hug. He rested his cheek on the top of her head, sighing with contentment. She rubbed her hand up and down his back, giving him a tight squeeze before she pulled away.

"How was your day?" she asked, moving a short piece of hair away from his forehead.

Bolin shrugged his shoulders, sighing. "A lot of the players are afraid to play right now. I understand why. I’m scared too."

Opal tightened her grip on his arms. "Everything will be okay, Bolin. This Equalist problem will end . . . It _has_ too." she touched his cheek. "Why don’t you hold a match when the arena reopens? You, Korra, and Mako could play again."

Bolin smiled brightly at that. "You think that’ll convince the players to come compete again?"

Opal shrugged her shoulders. "I see why not. If you remind them why they shouldn’t be afraid, it might change their minds. Besides, how fun would it be for you to play again? I know I’ve always wanted to see it."

Bolin laughed, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her into a big hug. "I love you, Opal." he spun her around before setting her down on the ground.

Opal heard the running water coming from the bathroom, being reminded that she was about to take a bath. She grabbed Bolin’s hand. "Come on, I know something that’ll relax you." she led him into the bathroom.

Bolin smiled, arching an eyebrow. He was already removing his shirt as Opal shut the water off. "How did I get so lucky to have someone like you?"

Opal smiled up at him. "I’m the lucky one." she reached on her toes, kissing him lightly as she helped him remove the rest of his shirt. "I love you, Bolin. So much." she whispered against his lips, her hands entangled in his hair.

Bolin continued to kiss her hungrily, removing her shirt. His lips trailed down her neck, making Opal laugh. She gently put a hand on his chest, removing her pants. She got into the bathtub first, the feeling of the hot water immediately soothe all her worries away. Bolin got in a few seconds after her, sitting behind her. Opal shifted, so that she was now sitting on his lap, her back pressed against his chest.

"I’m so glad we bought the apartment with the big bathtub." Bolin commented.

Opal laughed, intertwining her fingers with his. She was her most happy when she was with Bolin. He made her happy. He was silly, but so sweet. He was always so kind to her. Even when she was angry and woke up on the wrong side of the bed. He’d let her yell and take her frustrations out in him, but he never flinched. He was patient when she wasn’t. Her mother always said that the Beifong women were strong, independent women. Women who can take care of themselves, and who always had to be in charge. If you were lucky, you’d find someone who would be okay with that. Like her father was. He let her mother be who she wanted to be, without ever asking for her to calm down or change.

Opal never knew if she would meet someone who she would connect with so perfectly. Bolin and her had their arguments, but they were very rare. She never felt like she had to change for Bolin. He loved her for who she was. And she would love him forever for that. His lips were at the spot where her neck and shoulder connected. Opal titled her head, exposing more skin to his lips, closing her eyes.

"Opal?" his breath was hot against her already heated skin.

"Hmm?"

"Will you marry me?" he whispered.

Opal froze, her eyes fluttering open. She turned around quickly, causing water to cascade from the side of the tub onto the floor. But she didn’t care. She was facing him now, her eyes wide. Bolin smiled at her, his hand going to her cheek.

"I’ve loved you from the first moment I saw you. I knew you were the one I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. I promise to take care of you. Not that you really need that. You’re strong. But I promise to always be there for you. And I promise to make sure you are always happy. I love you, Opal. So much. And all I want is to grow old with you by my side." he wiped a fallen tear away from Opal’s cheek. "Will you please do me the honor and marry me?" he choked out, becoming emotional himself.

Opal threw her arms around his neck, sobbing into him as she kept nodding her head. "Yes, yes of course I will." he held her close to him, laughing. Opal pulled away enough to look at him. She grabbed his face between her hands, giving him a big kiss.

"I . . . have . . . a . . . ring . . ." he said between kisses.

Opal laughed, kissing his nose. "Thank you for asking me." she whispered as more tears spilled from her eyes.

He wiped them away. "Thank you for saying yes."

Opal threw herself at him again, kissing him. She has never felt more happy than she does in this moment right now. She was going to spend her life with Bolin. And what a happy life that was going to be.

__________________________

"Nobody is going to catch us?"

Jinora smiled over at Kai, shaking her head. He was nervous, she knew that. The last thing he wanted was her father kicking him off of the island, sending him to go live on a different Air Temple. Jinora wouldn’t let that happen. If Kai couldn’t stay here, she would go with him. Wherever he went, she would be there too.

Jinora knew her father wouldn’t kick him off the island, though. He didn’t hate Kai, she knew that. Besides, her father knew that one day, she would find someone she loved and begin a life with them. She wasn’t neglecting her airbending responsibilities being with Kai. Actually, being with him helped her with her responsibilities because he was an airbender as well. She did a lot of private lessons with him.

But tonight was different. Jinora was nervous, too. Her father and mother were gone, at a meeting with some of the city council. Everyone was now sleeping on the island. She knew her father would be gone for a few more hours if it had taken this long already. She already made sure her siblings were good and ready for bed, sending them off an hour ago. Now, with everyone asleep and her father absent, she knew it would be awhile till she got another opportunity like this again.

She’s known she has wanted to have sex with Kai for awhile now. She has been waiting until she felt ready. Until he was ready himself. It was a big moment for their relationship. But after a lot of meditation, and a long conversation with Kai about it, she was ready.

They ended up on her bed, Kai on top of her. Jinora held his face in her hands, kissing him passionately. His lips trailed down her neck, causing Jinora to tremble slightly. There was too many clothes between them. She was ready to be close to him in every sense of the word. She pushed him back gently, sitting up. She pulled her shirt over her head. She pulled Kai back in, kissing him. She felt his fingers go to the back of her bra, but they hesitated.

"May I . . . Can I . . ."

She nodded her head. Kai unclasped her bra, tossing it on the floor. Instinctively, Jinora covered herself. She hasn’t ever been this bare around someone before. Her cheeks felt warm. But the look Kai was giving her cause all of her insecurities to fade away. She brought him back into a kiss, her hands at the hem of his shirt. She tugged it over his head, throwing it next to her clothes on the ground. Her fingers trailed on his bare chest, goosebumps appearing where her fingers once were.

Kai kissed her, his lips warm against her own. Jinora locked her arms around his neck, pulling him closer to her. His hands her on her hips, pulling her closer to him. She trailed her hands down to his pants, her hands hesitant. Kai shifted, removing his pants nervously. His hands were slightly shaking as he was at the hem of her pants.

Jinora slowly began pulling them off, Kai pulling them the rest of the way off. Now they both were as naked as the day they were born. Kai climbed back on the bed, hovering over Jinora. He pressed his warm lips to her stomach, kissing his way up to her neck and jaw. He met her lips. One of his hands trailed down her body, causing goosebumps to appear on her heated skin.

She shifted so that Kai was now laying on the bed. She climbed on top of him, kissing his lips. She smiled softly at him. "I love you." she whispered.

"I love you, too." and she could honestly say she knew he did.

Jinora slowly shifted onto him, so that they were connected now. She stopped moving, waiting for the pain to become dull. Kai held her waist, but didn’t move. He was waiting for her to make the first move. He knew she would be in pain at the beginning. Jinora pressed the palms of her hands against his chest, beginning to move slowly when the pain became dull. It was a strange feeling, but she liked it. A lot.

She let out a small moan, leading one of Kai’s hands to one of her breasts. She continued her slow pace, but the building in her stomach was becoming hungry for more. Feeling tired, she shifted off of Kai, moving him on top of her. Kai slowly connected back into her, kissing her as he did so. He began moving at a slightly quicker pace than she was just going, but Jinora liked it.

She held onto Kai as he continued doing this, moaning in his ear. He responded by moving a little quicker. Jinora closed her eyes, feeling his lips on her jaw. The pain was dulled by the good feeling building in her stomach. She wrapped her legs around him when she felt the build reach its climax. She tightened her grip on him, and seconds later, she felt him reach his climax. They didn’t move for a few second. They just held onto each other.

Kai slowly shifted out of her, laying down next to her. He brought her into his arms, moving the covers over them. Jinora began leaving feather kisses on his chest before resting her cheek on it. She let out a small breath of air, closing her eyes as he kissed her forehead.

"I love you, Jinora." he murmured.

Jinora smiled against his chest. "I love you, too, Kai."

____________________________

"I just think you need to relax, Lin. You’ve been stressing yourself out over everything that’s happened lately."

Lin grunted, taking a long drink of the whiskey in her hand. "I won’t relax until that _fucker_ is behind bars." _or dead_. But Lin didn’t say that part aloud.

Kya sighed, sitting down next to her on the couch. "I’m worried about you, Lin. Have you even eaten a meal today?"

Lin frowned. "I’ve been really busy . . ." she stopped talking when Kya began getting up. She quickly grabbed her hand. "Wait, it’s okay. I ate lunch." that was a lie. She hasn’t eaten anything since yesterday. But she didn’t want Kya to worry about her. There were a lot of things she could handle, but a worried Kya was not one of them. She’ll never catch a break.

Kya hesitated, clearly catching her lie, but sat back down next her anyway. She grabbed the whiskey from her hand, taking a drink herself before setting it down on the table. "Well, if you refuse to eat, you’ll at least let me help you relax."

Lin arched an eyebrow. "What do you mean—" she was interrupted by Kya’s lips crashing into her own.

Lin thought about pushing her away, maybe even sending her home. She had a lot she needed to focus on. Distractions weren’t needed right now. But the feeling of Kya’s lips against her own, and her hands trailing under her shirt made Lin think better of it. She knew she needed to relax a little. It was just difficult for her too. It always has been.

Besides, if Kya left Lin wasn’t sure she would stop herself from finishing the entire bottle of whiskey. So she kissed Kya back, shifting Kya so that Kya now sat on top of her lap. She removed Kya’s shirt, throwing it on the seat next to them. Kya gave her a playful smile, gently holding her against the couch.

"Someone seems eager." she teased.

Lin frowned, not enjoying the teasing. "I haven’t seen you for weeks. Yeah, I’m a little eager." she went to kiss Kya again, but Kya’s hands still held their place on her shoulders, holding her back. Lin sighed. "What?" she nearly groaned.

Kya still wore a playful smile, clearly loving teasing Lin. "Say it." her voice was low and husky.

Lin raised her eyebrows. "Say what?" what she wanted to say was nothing. What she wanted was to be preoccupied with a naked Kya. But none of those things seemed like they were going to happen.

Kya leaned in closer to her. "Say you love me."

Lin rolled her eyes almost immediately. "I love you. You know that." she went to kiss Kya, glad the teasing could be over for now. But Kya’s hands still held her in place. Lin sighed again.

"Now say you want me." her voice was seductively low, a voice usually saved for the bedroom only. Her hands began to slowly remove Lin’s shirt.

Lin swallowed loudly, arching an eyebrow as Kya removed her own bra. Normally Lin wouldn’t give into Kya’s games, but looking at Kya undress herself made all her thoughts foggy. "I want you." she whispered, forgetting off of her worries and stresses.

Kya titled her head slightly, pushing herself off of Lin as she removed her pants. "What was that?" she stood there, completely naked, looking at Lin with mock confusion.

Lin swallowed loudly, licking her lips as she stared up and down Kya’s body. "I said, _I_. _Want_. _You_." she nearly growled, reaching out for Kya and pulling her back on top of her.

Kya was now in a fit of giggle as Lin kissed down her jaw and neck.

_____________________________

Korra trailed the tips of her fingers down Asami’s side. Things had been weird lately between them, Korra couldn’t deny that. Asami had become suddenly distant. She was working a lot, which confused Korra since Korra had many days off now. And she knew Asami had nothing too important to work on right now. Normally, Asami would love to spend all her time with Korra, especially while Korra was off, but . . . Korra didn’t know what was wrong.

Tonight had been their worst. Asami came home late, for one, and she didn’t even say hello to Korra. She just went straight to her office, locking herself inside. Korra tried to talk to her, she even brought her some food, but Asami wasn’t in a good mood tonight. And Asami’s bad moods didn’t scare Korra, though sometimes they should. What scared Korra was the fact that Asami wasn’t even looking at her.

Korra wondered what she had done to make Asami so upset with her. Was it fighting at the arena when she was supposed to be healing? Was it even going in the first place, or even suggesting for it to happen? Korra has done a lot of stupid things in her life, but nothing that angered Asami this much. Korra has even been really nice to Hiroshi whenever they see each other, and she hasn’t pressed Asami to move out of the Sato mansion. She’s been very patient, but if Asami wasn’t going to talk with her, she didn’t know what she was going to do. Lose her mind? Maybe.

It confused Korra when Asami finally came out of her office, took a quick shower, and snuggled up to Korra on their bed. She still hasn’t said anything to her yet, but she didn’t push Korra away when she began trailing her fingers lightly on Asami’s side. So that’s what she’s been doing. Sitting silently, lightly touching Asami, trying to figure out what is wrong.

Asami let out a small sigh, moving to shut the light off. She tucked herself beneath the covers, laying away from Korra, with her back facing her. Korra sighed heavily, pulling down the covers roughly, climbing into bed. She laid on her back, staring up at the ceiling. Korra frowned, sitting up. She turned on the lamp on the bedside table, crossing her arms over her chest when she heard Asami sigh.

"Is everything okay?" Korra asked, her tone anything but friendly.

Asami didn’t turn to face her. "Everything _was_ fine before you turned on the light."

Korra’s eyebrows pushed together. This wasn’t Asami. "Are you okay, Asami?" her voice was softer now, almost pleading with Asami to tell her what was wrong.

Asami still didn’t turn around, but she curled up into a ball, becoming very small. "Everything is fine, Korra." she sighed, her voice small. "I’m just tired."

Korra inhaled deeply. "No, you’re not fine. You’ve been so distant with me these last few days. Is it me? Did I do something wrong?"

Asami turned around at that, sitting up. She grabbed Korra’s face, looking so sad. "No, no, it’s not you, Korra."

Korra frowned. "Then what is it?" her voice nearly broke. With everything that has been going on lately in her life, the last thing she wanted was Asami to be upset with her.

Instead of answering, Asami kissed Korra. It was a hungry kiss, but something felt off about it. Korra didn’t question it, though. She kissed her back, allowing Asami to climb onto her lap. Korra wanted to feel close to Asami again. She didn’t want to feel this . . . this distance. She wanted everything to be okay. She loved Asami, more than life itself. She couldn’t dare think that Asami didn’t want to be with her anymore.

So if kissing Asami, and letting Asami begin undressing herself could fix whatever problem they were having, Korra would indulge. She helped Asami undress herself, kissing her chest once the skin was exposed. Korra let one of her hands trail down Asami’s stomach, going under the hem of her pants. Asami moaned into her mouth when Korra touched her most sensitive area, moving her hand in a slow, circular motion.

Korra pulled her hand back, pulling Asami’s pajamas pants off. Asami shifted to make it easier for them to be removed. Korra pulled her back on her lap, her hand finding Asami’s middle. Asami kissed her, her hands entangling in Korra’s hair. Korra slipped two fingers slowly in side Asami, Asami moaning with pleasure at the action. Korra moved in and out of Asami, her lips still on her’s. She started out slow, but when one of Asami’s hands found Korra’s hand at her middle, she began moving them faster.

Korra knew exactly what Asami liked and what could make her reach climax quickly by this point in their relationship. She kissed Asami as she finally reached her climax, moaning into Korra’s mouth. Korra slowly slid her fingers out of Asami, letting Asami collapse onto her. She wrapped her arms tightly around Asami.

"I love you, Korra." Asami said quietly, looking into Korra’s eyes. "There’s nothing wrong, and I’m sorry for making you feel like there ever was anything to begin with." Asami smiled, but Korra knew it was forced.

She just nodded her head, not saying anything. She knew Asami was hiding something from her, and she knew they weren’t okay. She just wished she knew what Asami was keeping from her . . . And how they were going to fix this. But Korra didn’t want to get into it right now, so she cuddled up next to Asami, wrapping her arms around her bare torso, pulling Asami close to her.

_____________________________

Kuvira danced to the beat of the music, washing the last bit of dishes. She was off tonight, so she went about cleaning her entire apartment. It was a lovely distraction. And after she cleaned everything, she cooked dinner for her and Baatar, even though Baatar was still at work. She wanted to talk with him, and thought the friendly offer of food would be a good start. She didn’t cook often, so she really hoped he would come home earlier. She even sent him a text telling him to come home early if he could.

Two hours had passed since she text him, and he hasn’t even replied or came home. She pulled out a nice bottle of red wine, pouring herself a glass. She leaned against the counter, drinking the glass of wine quickly before pouring herself another. She drank that one quickly too. She walked over to the radio, turning it up slightly, moving along to the music as she poured herself another glass.

This small rift between her and Baatar was stupid and she was over it. She no longer regrets kissing him. Actually, she’s glad she did. What she regrets was ever walking away, and then ignoring him. I mean, it’s not like they haven’t kissed before. They’ve done a lot of things before, having actually been in a relationship with one another. Why this kiss was awkward, she didn’t know.

When Baatar finally came home, Kuvira was already down her fourth glass of wine. She smiled when she saw him. "Look who finally decided to show up."

Baatar removed his jacket, frowning. "Are you drunk?"

Kuvira shook her head. "Not yet." she danced over to the kitchen, putting his plate on the table. "I made you dinner."

Baatar slowly walked to the kitchen, cautiously eyeing Kuvira. "You told me. Thank you." he sat down at the counter, as she poured him a glass of wine. He took a sip, smiling. "Our favorite."

Kuvira’s smile grew at that. "You remembered."

He almost looked insulted. "Of course I do."

Kuvira leaned against the counter a few feet away from him, taking a long drink of her wine. "I don’t like how we’ve been avoiding each other." it was half the confidence of the alcohol, and half herself who decided being blunt and getting to the point was best for them, that caused her to say that.

Baatar set his fork down, looking up at her. "I don’t either, Kuvira. I’m sorry."

They stayed silent for a moment. Kuvira lightly swayed to the music as she slowly drank the wine in her glass as Baatar finished the dinner she cooked him. He finished his first glass of wine shortly after. He got up, grabbing his plate and walking over to the sink. Kuvira was right next to him, going to grab the plate from his hands. He shook his head, turning the sink on and washing his own plate.

Kuvira inhaled deeply, folding her arms across her chest. "I don’t regret kissing you." that was the confidence of the alcohol. she was leaning against the counter next to him, looking up at him.

Baatar looked over at her when he was done cleaning his dish. "Why did you walk away from me then?"

Kuvira sighed, moving away from the counter and walked into the livingroom. "I panicked. We haven’t been together for two years. I guess I didn’t know if it was a good idea to bring this up again. We’re both older now, and I don’t want what we used to have before. Too scared to make what we had official . . ." she shook her head, her cheeks feeling warm. She finished the wine in her glass before she spoke up again. "If we were going to do this again, I want us to be in an official relationship."

Baatar had his arms crossed as she walked into the livingroom, but he stayed a good distance away. "Do you still have feelings for me, Kuvira?"

Her eyes widen slightly as she frowned. "Of course I do, Baatar. And I tried moving on, believe me I have." she stared down at empty glass, needing more alcohol for a conversation like this.

Baatar’s eyebrows pushed together. "Is that supposed to make me feel good? Imagining you with other people?"

Kuvira shook her head. "No, that’s not why I told you." she sighed again, walking over to him. "Do you think we’re being ridiculous? Do you feel like what we had should stay in the past?"

Baatar walked closer to her slowly. "I don’t know." he whispered as they were now only inches apart. He grabbed the empty glass of wine, setting it down on the coffee table next to them. He tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear, leaning down, kissing her.

Kuvira wrapped her arms around his neck, welcoming the kiss. He wrapped an arm around her waist, standing up straight. She was lifted off of the ground at the movement, their lips never breaking apart. Baatar put his hands under her thighs as Kuvira wrapped her legs around his waist. He began to led them to her bedroom.

"Let’s go in your room." she whispered against his lips.

She could feel Baatar’s smile against her lips. "You only want to use my bed because of the metal." he said as he sat her down on the edge of his bed.

Kuvira smiled, unbuttoning his shirt. "You know how much fun we used to have with metal beds in the past." she reminded him, pulling his shirt off of him.

Baatar chuckled. "I remember my mother finding me with my hands—"

"Yeah, that was embarrassing. Let’s not bring that up." Kuvira said quickly, her hands working off his pants.

Baatar removed her shirt. She was wearing traditional Zaofu clothing, what she usually wore when she was home. He removed his pants, his hands trailing down her thighs in the process. Kuvira moved back on his bed as he climbed onto it with her. His lips finding her’s once more. It was easy, being with Baatar like this. It reminded her of when they were younger and experiencing new things with each other for the first time. How nervous she was when they first had sex. All of that seemed silly now.

Kuvira metalbent Baatar to the bed, so that his back was now pressed against the mattress. He laughed, shaking his head. She smiled, kissing his lips. Her lips trailed down his jaw and neck, lightly biting his neck. She began trailing kisses down his chest and stomach. Baatar let out a small moan. Kuvira smiled up at him, his hands on her waist. She sat in his lap, pulling him up into a sitting position. Baatar kissed her neck, biting and sucking. She pressed a firm hand to his chest.

"Don’t mark me up." she said as a playful smile played on her lips.

Baatar rolled his eyes. "You say it like I can’t control myself."

"I remember all the guards and even Su asking what happened to me after we spent the night together. You love to mark me up."

Baatar’s lips were back on her neck. "I’ll try my best, but I promise you nothing."

With a flick of her wrist, she metalbent his hands to his sides. "Maybe you’ll try harder with enough motivation." she released his hands, kissing him hungrily.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A big shoutout to my friend honestlykorrathough for inspiring me to write the Kyalin scene. Also if you want you can follow my tumblr blog kuviraforevergirl. And I'd just like to say that the Kai and Jinora scene made me uncomfortable because to me they are still children no matter what. I am Tenzin.


	10. Borderline

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Baatar was confused
> 
> Kuvira was anxious
> 
> Korra was angry
> 
> Hiroshi had other plans

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry there wasn't an update last week! I've been so sick, but now I am feeling better and to celebrate I'm writing 2 chapters this week!
> 
> Also, the story is about to take a turn, but I have a lot of exciting things planned. So please hang in there! If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask me at my tumblr blog kuviraforevergirl . I will answer all of your questions there.

Saturday October 19th

Baatar lightly trailed his fingers over the marks he left on Kuvira’s skin. He chuckled, shaking his head. She would be upset about that, having told him multiple times last night to not be so careless with his kisses on her skin. Kuvira was fast asleep, wrapped up in his blankets. He rested his head on his hand, staring down at her. He lightly moved some of her hair out of her face, giving her a light kiss on her temple.

Baatar’s cell phone suddenly went off. He cringed, jumping out of his bed. His phone was in the livingroom. He grabbed it out of his jacket, squinting his eyes at the time. It was five in the morning. Who was calling him at five in the morning?

"Hello?" he sounded more annoyed than he intended too. But it didn’t matter how he sounded, it was early in the morning. Who wouldn’t be annoyed?

"Junior! Did you hear the good news already?" it was his mother. She sounded more excited than he’s ever heard her sound before.

He frowned, walking back into the bedroom, trying to find pants. Kuvira was now sitting up in his bed. He quickly pulled sweat pants on, holding the phone between his cheek and shoulder. "Good news that couldn’t wait until a decent time in the morning?"

His mother snorted. "Opal is getting married, Junior!"

Baatar’s eyes widened at the good news. Of course his mother would be ecstatic. One of her children are finally getting married. Baatar smiled. "That’s great news, mom. When did it happen?"

"Last night!" she practically squealed. "Of course, I thought you and Kuvira would be married before any of my other children, but I knew Opal and Bolin would tie the knot. I’m surprised it took them this long."

Baatar cringed, hoping Kuvira didn’t hear what his mother just said. He turned away from Kuvira, hiding the redness that appeared on his face. "Would it be okay if I called you later to talk about this? It’s really early—"

"Of course, Junior. I’m sorry to call you so early, but I needed to tell you." she paused for a moment. "Junior, act surprised when Opal tells you."

He laughed, nodding his head even though she can’t see him. "Of course. I love you, mom."

"I love you, too, Junior." she said before hanging up.

Baatar set his phone down on one of the dressers, crawling on top of his bed. He kissed Kuvira before she could say anything. He felt her smile against his lips. He sat back, keeping a hand on her leg. She began running her fingers through her hair, raising her eyebrows at him.

"What was that all about?"

"Opal got engaged last night."

Kuivra’s eyes widened, a smile breaking across her face. "That’s wonderful news. I’m so happy for them."

"So is mom."

Baatar is happy for his little sister. He knew that she was in love with Bolin the moment they met. And he liked Bolin. He was a sweet guy. Never someone he disapproved of. Bolin would make his sister happy, and that’s all he cared about.

He grabbed Kuvira, pulling her close to him. He gave her a sudden kiss, which made her laugh. She gently put her hands on his chest, pushing him away. He frowned, but smiled when he saw her smile.

"Wait . . . What does _this_ mean now?" she asked, her cheeks turning a light pink.

Baatar frowned with confusion. "What does what mean now?"

Kuvira sighed, sitting up straight. She held the blankets close to her chest. " _This_ . . . us." she said, moving a hand between her and him.

"Oh." Baatar nodded his head with understanding. He smiled at her. "This could go one of two ways, Kuvira: We can just forget what happened last night and remain friends, or you can accompany me to dinner tonight and we can begin an adult relationship with one another." he touched her cheek lightly. "I really hope you chose the latter because last night was fun and I’d like to do that again."

She nudged him, laughing. "You’re ridiculous." she rolled her eyes, but smiled at him. "I’m working tonight. Why don’t we go out for lunch instead?"

Baatar frowned. "Lunch is so . . . unromantic, though." he pouted.

Kuvira shook her head, rolling her eyes again. "We had sex last night, I think the romance is already there, Baatar." she said unamused.

Baatar’s cheeks felt warm. He swallowed loudly, rubbing the back of his neck. "You’re right. Lunch it is, then."

Kuvira snorted, shaking her head. She was scanning the damage on her skin. She brushed the tips of her fingers over the markings. "You are so lucky I can hide these." she pushed him down on the back, so his back pressed against the mattress. She leaned on him, kissing him.

Baatar would never get over this. Kuvira kissing him. The way she looked in his bed in the morning after a passionate night between them. Her hair messed from him running his hands through it. He would never get over the feeling Kuvira gave him. Like he was the luckiest man alive.

Kuvira laughed a breathy laugh, sitting up straight again. She held the sheet close to her as she got out of his bed, walking to the bathroom. Baatar laid his head back down on the pillow once she was out of his sight. He couldn’t wipe the goofy smile plastered on his face. He inhaled deeply, looking at the clock by his bed. He would have to get ready for work soon. He was exhausted, since he didn’t get much sleep last night. But it was a good feeling.

He pushed himself off of his bed when he heard Kuvira turn the shower on. He knocked on the door a few times before she opened, peaking out through a small sliver. She eyed him curiously, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips.

"No." she said, shutting the door.

Baatar sighed, but smiled, knocking again. "Please. I actually have to go to work soon. You don’t."

There was a moment of hesitation before he heard her sigh. She didn’t open the door, but the lock clicked. His smile widened as he opened the bathroom door. He held his hands up in surrender when she narrowed her eyes at him. She pointed a finger at him.

"No funny business."

Baatar chuckled. "Still bitter over what happened last time we had sex in the shower."

"I broke my ankle, Baatar. I can’t have that happen again. Not with how badly I am needed at the station." she said with a serious tone of voice.

Baatar frowned slightly. He still didn’t like the idea of Kuvira risking her life for random strangers, but he knew she was strong. Not only was she an excellent fighter, but she was a phenomenal bender. "How is that all going anyway? How is Korra?"

If Baatar had to be honest, he wasn’t so aware of what was going on with the Equalist group. He knew they were bad, and hated benders. He knew they were dangerous, considering what they did to the arena. And the fact that they tried assassinating the avatar. Whoever they were, they weren’t too be brushed off.

Kuvira sighed heavily, looking exhausted. "Korra isn’t allowed to be on the force right now. Chief’s orders. But she’s scared. I’m scared. They’re trying to kill her. I just wish we knew where Amon was hiding. I’d like to take him out myself, get this whole problem over with." she shook her head.

Baatar frowned. "They’re also trying to kill benders."

Kuvira shrugged her shoulders, frowning. "Actually, they’re taking bending away. Well, Amon is." she shuddered at an unspoken thought.

"He can take bending away? How is that even possible?"

Kuvira shook her head. "We don’t know. But it’s terrifying."

Baatar ran a hand through his wet hair. An idea struck him. "Why don’t I help?"

Kuvira wasn’t facing him, but he heard her snort. "I don’t want you getting yourself involved in this, Baatar."

Baatar turned her around, so that he could look at her. She looked surprised at the sudden movement, but didn’t say anything. "I’m not a bender. I can easily blend in with the Equalist. I can find out where Amon is hiding, and tell you and Aunt Lin. Problem solved."

She frowned heavily at this idea. "Problem not solved, Baatar. You’re a Beifong. They’re not going to easily let your join. And what if someone saw you with me? They’ll know you’re working against them."

Baatar shook his head. "I have my ways of making them believe me. Besides, if you’re worried about protection, I’ve got some. Actually," he quickly jumped out of the shower, throwing a towel on, running to the livingroom where he left his stuff last night. He grabbed his bag that he takes to work, removing the glove Hiroshi gave him to work on. He ran back to the bathroom, showing Kuvira. "I still have to do slight modifications on it, but I can have it working in just a few days."

Kuvira’s eyes widen, her face going pale. The shower was turned off. "Who gave that to you?"

Baatar frowned at her reaction. "Hiroshi Sato. He has a few at Future Industries, but let me take this one home to modify it." he shrugged his shoulders.

"That’s a weapon the Equalist use!" she nearly shouted. Suddenly, her face became more angry. "I knew that bastard was helping the Equalist out." she got out of the shower, grabbing another towel. She walked to her bedroom, grabbing her phone. "I have to call Chief."

Baatar’s frown never left his face. "Wait— what do you want me to do?"

Kuvira just held her hand out to him. "You’re not going to work today. Call in sick or something."

Baatar would’ve laughed at that, because he’s technically his own boss and doesn’t have to answer to anyone, if the situation was different. He stared down at the glove in his hands, feeling very confused. None of this made any sense . . . why would Hiroshi be working with the Equalist? What did he have to gain from that? His daughter is dating the avatar . . .

It does make sense why he seemed so upset that Baatar was actually okay with the benders. His head began hurting. He walked in his bedroom to sit at the edge of his bed while Kuvira spoke on the phone to his aunt.

Things just either got a lot better, or a lot worst. He wasn’t sure which one it was yet.

____________________________

"Chief, it’s important." Kuvira clutched the phone close to her ear. Lin was over her accusations. "Baatar was given an Equalist glove by Hiroshi." she didn’t feel comfortable talking about this information over the phone, but she knew Lin wasn’t working right now and she didn’t want to show up unexpectedly at her house.

"To join the Equalist?"

"No. To enhance. Maybe to join, too, I’m not sure. Neither is Baatar." Kuvira didn’t know all the details about why Baatar had the glove, but he wasn’t telling her much, which made her assume there isn’t much to actually be said. Hiroshi probably only gave him the glove to enhance and that was that.

Lin sighed. "Kuvira, we searched the entire company. Nothing. Do you know how that looked on us? This isn’t a lot of rope for us."

Kuvira frowned. "I know, Chief, but it’s something, right? We can’t let Hiroshi walk away."

"Have you even spoken to Asami about any of this like I’ve been telling you to?"

Kuvira had many reasons why she’s been avoiding Asami lately. Accusing her father of being apart of a terrorist group wasn’t exactly something she wanted to confront Asami about. "It’s not exactly a conversation I want to have with her, Chief."

"I don’t care what you want, Kuvira, if you’re going to throw these accusations around, you need to speak to someone who may actually be helpful to us."

Kuvira sighed heavily. She sat down on the edge of her bed. "Do you believe me?"

There was silence for a few seconds. "I do, kid. I have your back. Just reproach the situation so we don’t look stupid again."

Kuvira nodded her head to herself. I guess it was time to have that conversation with Asami now.

___________________________

Korra got out of bed and dress before Asami was even up. She sat at the edge of their bed, staring at a sleeping Asami. She looked so peaceful . . . so beautiful. Korra inhaled deeply. She loved Asami so much. She would die for her. It used to scare Korra with the way she felt about Asami, but now it comforts her. She knew Asami loved her too. She felt it.

That’s why the way Asami was acting really confused her. She was lying to Korra. And distancing herself. This wasn’t Asami’s usual nature. Asami is a very confrontational person. And her and Korra had great communication in their relationship with each other. Nothing was ever unsaid between them. But lately, things were different. And that bothered Korra.

Asami began stirring. She turned over, throwing her hand over Korra’s side of the bed. When she felt nothing but mattress, her eyes fluttered open. She looked panicked for a second before her eyes met where Korra was. She then looked sad. Korra sighed.

"I need you to tell me what you’ve been hiding. I promise I won’t be mad." Korra’s voice was low, and sounded more tired than she actually felt.

Asami sat up, clutching the blankets to her chest. She looked nervous. "Promise?" she whispered.

Korra shifted, actually surprised Asami was going to tell her why she’s been acting weird. Korra felt curious to know. She was now facing Asami completely. "I promise."

Asami looked down, unable to make eye contact with Korra. She sighed heavily. "I did something I regret . . . I don’t exactly know why I did it, but I feel so awful about it. I can’t even stand to look at you, because I feel more guilty. Honestly, I feel stupid." she shook her head, sighing again. "I told my father about the search warrant."

Korra frowned heavily. Why did they get early notice? Most warrants she handled with were a right there, right then situation. She would show up at someone’s house, with the warrant in place, and bam— the whole concept for the search warrant is to find something to expose someone. They don’t get a chance to have an early notice, because then they’ll just hide things. I mean, with Future Industries being such a popular company, practically running Republic City, it does make sense why they would be an advance notice . . . but still, this wasn’t making any sense.

Korra’s eyes widened. If Lin searched Future Industries with Hiroshi having an early noticed, that means he was able to hide everything. And once again, the Equalist will be another step ahead of them.

But Hiroshi’s notice wasn’t a piece of paper. It was his own daughter. Korra wiped her frown away as best as she could, but she felt angry. Why would Asami do something like that? Did she support the Equalist? Even after they tried killing her own girlfriend?

"Why did you do that?" Korra’s voice sounded strain, like she was trying to hard to control it. She was.

Asami was crying now. "I don’t know! He’s my father, Korra . . . I didn’t want to see Future Industries be destroyed because of him. Please don’t be upset with me."

Korra stood up quickly. She was fuming with anger, and she really didn’t want to yell at Asami. She promised not to get upset with her, but this . . . She sighed heavily. "I can’t be here right now." she decided it’s better to leave before she says something she’s going to regret later.

"Wait, Korra, please!" Asami stumbled out of the bed, grabbing her arm. "Please don’t leave."

Korra closed her eyes. "I just need to take a walk . . . to clear my head." she opened her eyes, giving Asami a quick kiss on the cheek. "I’ll be back later." she muttered, removing Asami’s clasp on her.

Korra grabbed Naga when she was outside of the Sato mansion. She was glad she took Naga from Air Temple Island yesterday. Naga wasn’t allowed to stay here often, because Hiroshi was certain she was a vicious animal. Korra would love to show him how vicious she could be. She jumped on her, telling her to go. Quickly, Naga ran out of the Sato Estate at full speed. The cool, crisp air felt refreshing.

Korra was angry with Asami. Asami, her beautiful, amazing girlfriend. The love of her life. Asami Sato, who never makes mistakes. Who would never do something so . . . foolish. This wasn’t in Asami’s character to do something so stupid. Korra understands that it was for selfish reasons, and maybe she would’ve done the same thing if it were her own father, and her own company, but that wasn’t the situation.

These people, the people her father is helping, tried killing Korra. She wasn’t about to justify anything involved with them right now.

She got off of Naga, trying her best to sneak her into the apartment. Naga wasn’t allowed to be here, but she couldn’t just leave her outside. She tried unlocking the door, but remembered Kuvira changed the lock. She sighed heavily, knocking rapidly on the door until someone answered. She knew it was early, but if she was up, Kuvira was up. Or she would be now. Baatar actually answered the door. He yelled at the sight of Naga in his face. Korra didn’t say anything, pushing Naga inside.

Kuvira quickly came into the livingroom, looking concerned to see Korra here so early. Kuvira’s hair was wet, braided down her back. Baatar’s hair was also wet, Korra noticed. Korra also noticed markings on Kuvira’s neck. Despite her mood, she smiled.

"I’m sorry, was I interrupting something?" she could never pass up an opportunity to tease Kuvira.

Kuvira rolled her eyes, crossing her arms over her chest. "We have something important to talk about. Baatar has an Equalist glove."

Korra frowned, turning around to face Baatar. "Hiroshi gave it to you, right?"

Baatar nodded his head slowly, as if he was surprised she knew. "Yes, he did."

She turned back to Kuvira. "Asami told Hiroshi about the warrant."

"That’s why he was able to clear Future Industries!" she shouted, groaning. "Lin is so pissed to find nothing, Korra. But even she knows Hiroshi is helping the Equalist. And now we have proof." she gestured towards Baatar.

Korra put her hands on her hips. "You know we’ll need more than just the glove Baatar gave him. You know Hiroshi will deny it until his last breath." she sighed heavily.

"Even if you were to catch him off guard and were able to check Future Industries, I doubt you would’ve found something that linked Hiroshi to the Equalist." Baatar said.

Korra frowned. "What do you mean? We would’ve found a lot to take down the entire company."

"Exactly, just the company. There are a lot of non-benders working there. Any of the Equalist supplies could easily link to any of them. Hiroshi is smarter than to leave his ties to the Equalist exposed for anyone to see." Baatar said.

"He’s right, Korra. Hiroshi isn’t stupid." Kuvira frowned, shaking her head. "So where would he be hiding everything? Probably wherever Amon is hiding."

Korra frowned. "Maybe not . . ." she inhaled deeply. "I know another place we can check."

Kuvira raised her eyebrows slightly. "Where?"

Korra put her hands on her hips. "The Sato Estate."

__________________________________

Hiroshi walked over the White Lotus guards who were now on the ground. He removed his glove, putting it under his arm. He held his hand to the four other people he brought with him, having them stay where they were. He slowly walked over to the prison cell, stopping when he reached the door.

He was familiar with this person locked away, and the rest of his team who were also locked away. Everyone was aware of who they were. Hiroshi knew this group had one major motif that got them locked away. Hiroshi wanted the avatar dead. But he couldn’t kill her himself. Asami would never forgive him.

But these people? They could do whatever their cold hearts desired.

"I didn’t know I was allowed to have company." he heard the voice on the inside say.

Without saying a word, Hiroshi unlocked his jail cell. He threw the keys on the floor, turning around with his hands behind his back. "You know what you have to do now."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't worry, Asami will be back to her usual self in the next chapter. And yes, the Equalist reign is nearing an end. I have a lot planned for this story, but it's becoming a little tricky since I will be writing some canon events, but this being an AU things will be altered... Anyway, please stick around. It's about to get interesting. I hope you enjoyed this chapter! (:


	11. So Cold

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It was the end of one reign, and the beginning of the next...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, it's a little tricky right now! Here are canon events that I am sticking with:
> 
> *Harmonic Convergence has happened  
> *Jinora is a master airbender  
> *all the characters are the age they were at the end of Book 4
> 
> But this is an AU, so things are different and tricky to write with. But just continue to hang in there. Hopefully things begin making sense with this chapter. 
> 
> Enjoy!

Saturday October 19th (cont)

Lin lifted her head from the stack of papers she has to deal with with a sigh. She had the radio on low, listening to the news. Amon has been absent for the last couple of days since the arena attack. She didn’t like it. She didn’t like that he was hiding. Especially in _her_ city. She will find him. And she will take him down herself. This was all going to end. She was going to make sure of it.

There was a knock on her office door. Before she could say anything, Tenzin walked in. She stood up, expecting him to carry bad news with him.

"There is an urgent matter I must attend to at the Western Air Temple. I tried to persuade my family to attend, but Jinora doesn’t want to come and now none of my other children do. And Pema feels uncomfortable leaving them alone here without both of their parent’s . . ." he inhaled deeply. "Kya said she’ll watch over the island and my family, but . . ." he trailed off, worried planted on his face.

Lin walked over to him, putting her hand on his shoulder. "The island is one of the most secured places in the entire city. I have airships surrounding it constantly, and even undercover officers staying on the island. Not to mention the White Lotus. Everything will be fine, Tenzin." Lin wasn’t going to let Amon get the airbenders. Over her dead body.

Tenzin nodded once, a small smile of gratitude on his face. But he couldn’t wipe the worry from his eyes. "I’ll be gone for one week."

Lin crossed her arms over her chest, leaning against her desk. "When are you leaving?" she wished he was able to persuade his children to joining him to the Western Air Temple. Less people for her to worry about. "Is everything okay with the air temple?"

"In an hour." he sighed. "Everything should be fine. But I’m just going over there to make sure it is." he folded his arms across his chest. "Bumi should also be showing up tomorrow." he didn’t sound too excited about that.

Lin smiled. "You’re going to miss a family reunion." she teased.

Tenzin shook his head. "Oh, no, Bumi will still be here when I return. And I am assuming so will Kya." he eyed Lin curiously. "She doesn’t seem to be planning on leaving anytime soon, actually. I wonder why."

Lin shrugged her shoulders, walking around her desk to sit back down. "I haven’t said anything to her about it." she smirked, staring down at the stack of papers she still needed to go through. "But I definitely don’t mind her staying around."

"Of course _you_ wouldn’t." said Tenzin. "I’ll see you in a week, Lin. Please keep me informed on everything." he put his hand on her office door, but stopped, turning to face her again. "Thank you, Lin. For everything."

She nodded her head once. "Of course, Tenzin."

Tenzin left. Lin sat back down in her chair. A thank you didn’t feel necessary. She was just doing her job. Even though some days her job proved more difficult than she wished. With the search warrant failing on her, Amon hiding somewhere in her city, and Equalist members running around her streets in broad daylight doing whatever they wanted. Lin was tired. But she knew what her job entitled. It was never easy, not from the moment she started. She could handle it. Like always.

Her office door swung open. She looked up to scold whoever barged in, and also whoever was letting everyone in. But she stopped when she saw Asami Sato. She looked as professional as always, though her eyes were red like she’d been crying. You could say Lin was surprised to see her.

"Asami," she gestured at an empty chair in front of her desk. "Please, sit."

Asami shook her head, twisting her hands together. She looks so small. It reminded Lin of when Asami was just a child, going through one of the most horrific events in her life. It seemed to Lin that this poor girl would never catch a break.

"I told my father about the search warrant, so he cleared everything from Future Industries. He is an Equalist. High up, too, I guess." she sighed heavily, looking exhausted. "There is a place at the Estate where he keeps everything." she pulled out a set of key from her pockets, tossing them at Lin. "He’s working all day at Future Industries. I’ll be with him to make sure he doesn’t return home. You have what you need now."

Lin held the set of keys in her hand, looking at Asami with wide eyes. She stood up slowly composing herself. "Asami, you know what this is going to mean for your father, don’t you?"

Asami nodded her head, looking much stronger than she did a moment ago. "He’s not my father anymore. He stopped being my father a long time ago." she took a deep breath. "He needs to be behind bars before he hurts more people."

Lin squeezed her fist closed around the keys. "Thank you, Asami. I know this is hard, but you’re doing the right thing." she didn’t blame Asami for telling Hiroshi about the search warrant. That one would’ve failed anyway, she knew that. She knew what Asami was doing was a big move. It wasn’t easy to go against your own parents.

Asami nodded her head again, hugging herself. "I should go. You have all day." without another word, she was gone.

Lin looked down at the keys in her hand. She walked out of her office, looking over at Mako. "We’ve got a busy day ahead of us."

___________________________

"I’ll never get over how big this place is." Kuvira muttered.

When Kuvira got the urgent message from Lin saying to report at the Sato Estate, she nearly had to tackle Korra to the ground to stop her from tearing the city down to reach the Estate quick enough. Of course the first thought that crossed through Korra’s head was that something bad happened to Asami. But that wasn’t the case.

Kuvira stared at rows of Equalist weapons, and newer weapons that looked like robots. Officers were gathering all the stuff, taking it outside. Asami wasn’t here. She was distracting her father at Future Industries. But she gave Lin the information they desperately needed to expose her father and tear down the Equalist. Lin even let Korra come in and help remove stuff and take notes. Korra didn’t seem too pleased about this. Kuvira knew she must feel guilty for pushing Asami to make this decision, but everyone knew this was for the best.

They still didn’t know where Amon was hiding, but this was going to dent the Equalist heavily. That means Amon won’t have a lot to stand on anymore. Hiroshi was going to be thrown into custody, well, now, actually. And Kuvira was headed to arrest him with Lin. She didn’t want to miss the opportunity. Korra was to stay here, at the Estate, and wait patiently for Asami to return. Kuvira was nothing but joyous. The end of the Equalist reign was now.

She left the Estate with Lin. She kept her emotions locked away, knowing Lin would scold her if she showed any forms of excitement. Kuvira isn’t going to lie— she was happy to be tearing this terrorist group down.

Then she could take a much needed vacation and go back to Zaofu for a little. She missed the metal city, and Su, and the rest of the Beifong family. Opal can plan her wedding without the threat of the Equalist hanging over her head. Things were going to calm down again, and that was something to be joyous about.

When they arrived at Future Industries, Lin walked through the company ignoring anyone who protest— except nobody did. Nobody questions Chief Beifong. Hiroshi was down in the work shop with Asami by his side. When she saw Lin and Kuvira, she moved to the side, hugging herself. She was staring at the ground. Hiroshi was surprised and began yelling at Lin, but she read him his rights, and cuffed him despite his protests.

"You can’t do this! I have done nothing wrong!" he shouted as Lin began escorting him out of the building.

Lin didn’t say anything. She just kept walking. Kuvira lingered behind, walking over to Asami. She put her hand firmly on Asami’s shoulder, giving it a tight squeeze. Asami looked up, meeting her eyes. Kuvira never seen her look so sad.

"Is Korra okay?" she suddenly asked. Even though her father was being arrested right now, the only person she cared about was Korra. This girl was in deep. "I knew she went to see you after our fight this morning."

Kuvira nodded her head. "She’s fine . . . Asami, you didn’t do this for Korra, did you?"

Asami’s eyebrows pushed together. She shook her head. "I did this for my father. He needs to be stopped before he does something he’ll regret." she shook her head, staring off in the direction Lin and Hiroshi were walking. "When my mother died, it hit him hard. He was never the same after that, but he isn’t an evil man. He’s just . . . lost."

Kuvira nodded her head. She didn’t know a lot about the history of Asami, and what happened to her mother in detail. Asami rarely talked about it, and Kuvira never asked. But growing up having no parent’s herself, she understood what this must feel like to Asami. It’s a lonely road she’s heading down, and right now, Asami will need more people and love in her life than ever before.

"He’ll be okay, Asami." she hugged her. The gesture surprised Asami, and even herself. But she cared about Asami. She put her hands on her shoulder, looking up into her eyes. "You’re not alone. Remember that."

Asami nodded her head once, brushing away a tear that has fallen. "Thank you, Kuvira." she inhaled deeply, standing up straighter. "I don’t think I can return home . . . not after everything. That house is filled with such . . . sadness."

Kuvira nodded her head. "Well, Korra is there right now. But you both can stay at my place. You can sleep in my room."

Asami looked slightly confused. "Doesn’t Baatar live with you right now?"

Kuvira felt her face warm up. She shrugged her shoulders. "Yeah, it’s fine . . . Baatar and I are together." she didn’t want to go into the details of her relationship right now. "So you can Korra can sleep in my room, if you’d like." she rubbed the nape of her neck. "Better than staying on Air Temple Island and eating a vegetarian diet."

Asami smiled, nodding her head. "Korra and I would appreciate that. Just for a little while, until everything settles down again. Thank you, Kuvira."

Kuvira nodded her head. "I have to go back to the station with Lin. Are you going to be okay?"

Asami inhaled deeply. "Yeah, I suppose . . . I’m going to go home. I need to speak with Korra."

Kuivra smiled slightly. "She’s a mess. She feels really bad about what happened between you two."

Asami hugged herself again, bitting her bottom lip. "Me too."

Kuvira began walking away, knowing Lin is going to leave her behind if she doesn’t return to the car quick enough. Before she was gone, she turned to face Asami, arching her eyebrows. "Do you need a ride back to the Estate? I can drive you if you’d like."

Asami forced a small smile on her face, shaking her head. "No, it’s fine. But thank you."

Kuvira nodded her head once. "I’ll see you tonight!" she shouted, sprinting out of the building and meeting up with Lin.

___________________________

Korra was pacing her bedroom when Asami walked in. Korra stopped pacing, staring at Asami. She wanted nothing more than to cross the distance between them and wrap her arms around Asami. She stayed where she was, though. Asami sighed, walking over to sit down on the edge of their bed. Korra still stayed standing, but was glad the distance between them wasn’t that big anymore.

"I’m sorry about what I did, Korra. I panicked at the idea of my father being imprisoned. He’s the only family I have left." she looked up to meet Korra’s eyes. "But that’s not true anymore. I have you, now. I love you, Korra. I also love my father, which is why I knew turning him in was for the best for him. I just hope one day he’ll be able to forgive me."

Korra dropped to her knees in front of Asami, putting her hands on Asami’s thighs. "He needs to be worried if _you_ ’ _ll_ ever forgive him, Asami. You did nothing wrong. He was a terrorist. He tried killing me. He killed other people . . . and ruined people’s lives. He chose to betray his family. Not you."

Korra knows this problem is only half way done. Amon was still out there, still able to destroy people’s lives. And there was still Equalist followers. It was still going to be a lot of work to end the Equalist problem completely, but they were in the right track now with Hiroshi exposed. Korra knows very well that he was the brains being the Equalist. Not Amon. Amon is the face. Without Hiroshi, the Equalist were going to suffer a big loss.

Asami nodded her head, burying her face in her hands. She began sobbing. "I am so sorry, Korra. For everything."

Korra also knows with Hiroshi exposed as an Equalist supporter, Future Industries was going to take a big hit. Asami was going to take a big hit. Korra didn’t want that for her girlfriend, but there was no other way around this. She will help Asami with whatever she needed to ensure Future Industries will not suffer so much.

Korra sat down next to Asami, wrapping her arms around her. Asami’s arms clung to Korra for dear life. Korra just held her for a long time, never even thinking of letting her go. She rested her cheek on top of Asami’s head, holding her close to her chest.

"You don’t have to apologize to anyone, Asami. You didn’t do anything wrong." she kissed the top of her head. "I love you, okay? Everything will be okay. I promise."

Asami inhaled deeply, pulling away to wipe her eyes. She looked around their room, frowning. "I don’t want to stay here Korra." she met eyes with Korra. "Kuvira said we can stay with her and Baatar."

Korra frowned slightly. "I walked in on them having sex this morning . . . Well, _after_ they had sex." but it was better than staying on Air Temple Island and having to sleep on the uncomfortable beds and sneaking away for real food.

Asami laughed, which was like music to Korra’s ears. "Kuvira has walked in on us _actually_ having sex, so I think you got lucky." her laughter died out. "There’s a lot of memories in this house . . . A mix of good and bad."

Korra nodded her head. "That’s most houses for you." she put her arm around her shoulders. "When this is all settled, we should go on a vacation. Maybe down to the South Pole? My parent’s miss us."

Asami nodded. "I’ll love that." she said, even though Korra knew the South Pole was a hard place for Asami to stay. It was too cold for her. But she rarely complained about it.

* * *

"You sure this is okay, Kuvira?" Korra asked.

Kuvira nodded, taking the luggage from Korra’s hand. "Don’t even worry about it. You and Asami are always welcomed here." she said with a smile.

"Are you sure we’re not intruding on you and Baatar? I know how much you were in dire need of sex—" Asami hit Korra’s arm. Korra rubbed her arm, frowning. "What? She was."

Kuvira shook her head, rolling her eyes. Her face was red, since Baatar was standing in the kitchen and can hear every word Korra said. "How about we just not talk about my sex life?" she suggested.

Korra snorted, plopping down on the couch. "Sure, Kuvira. We won’t talk about it." she rolled her eyes, clearly being sarcastic. She glanced behind her shoulder at Baatar, who stood awkwardly in the kitchen. "Do you mind if we talk about Kuvira’s sex life, Baatar?"

Baatar held a glass of wine in his hands. He walked over to sit down next to Korra. "Well, uh, it’s probably not an appropriated conversation—"

"So you don’t want to hear about all the men she’s slept with while living out here?"

"Korra!" both Asami and Kuvira yelled.

Korra laughed, putting her hands up, surrendering. "Okay, okay. I’m just bored, Kuvira. Convince Lin to let me come back to work." she groaned.

Asami sat down on Korra’s lap, resting her head on her shoulder. "I like having you around, though." she mumbled.

Kuvira crossed her arms over her chest. "I even agree you should come back. Things are calming down now."

Korra wrapped her arms around Asami. She smirked over at Kuvira. "Besides, you miss me."

Kuvira groaned, but smiled. "I actually do. It’s been pretty lonely without you. But Lin has been making me work undercover, so I couldn’t work with you anyway."

"Too familiar of a face?" Baatar asked Korra.

Korra nodded her head, sighing. "You have no idea."

Kuvira walked into the guest room, where she and Baatar were staying. She changed into her officer uniform, walking out. Korra pouted slightly, wishing she could go back to work. She missed the thrill of it all. She missed being preoccupied. But she was okay with staying home for Asami. She knows Asami is going to need a lot of company around. And she was going to make sure Asami didn’t ever feel alone. Especially with what is going on with her father.

_________________________

Kuvira was gone, and Korra was passed out in the other room. Baatar was in the kitchen, working on some designs. It was late in the night. Asami walked out of the bedroom, pausing when she saw Baatar. She smiled, continuing to walk into the kitchen. She poured herself a glass of water. Baatar put his pencil down, looking over at her.

"How are you doing? I heard about your father today. I’m sorry." he meant to say something earlier, but the timing never felt appropriate. Even now it doesn’t.

Asami shrugged her shoulders. "I feel . . . indifferent." she shook her head. "Working on some designs?"

He nodded his head, glancing down at them. "I’m trying to design a new infrastructure for a train, but it’s not coming out right." he sighed.

Asami looked down at his blueprints. "It looks amazing." she muttered. "I can help you if you’d like."

Baatar smiled, nodding his head. "That would be great, actually."

Asami sat down at the table with him, holding the cup between two hands. She stared at it. "I understand if you and your father want to pull out of working with Future Industries. After the news breaks tomorrow, a lot of companies are going to pull out." she sighed.

Baatar hadn’t gotten word from his father yet, and he knew a scandal like this was definitely going to dent Future Industries, but he’s been working with the company up close and personal. It was a good company. Asami was a good person. He didn’t want to pull out, but unfortunately, it wasn’t his choice. He didn’t run BB Industries yet. He can only try and persuade his father to stay.

"Whatever happens, you still have my support." he said with a small smile. "But I won’t lie, things are going to be difficult for your company for awhile."

Asami looked sad as she nodded her head. "I know. I knew one day I would have to run the company, I just didn’t think it’d be this soon . . . or under these circumstances."

"I know a guy in the South Pole who might be willing to help you. He’s a little wacky, but a genius nonetheless."

Asami’s eyes widened with hope. "Really? What’s his name?"

"Varrick. I haven’t done business with him, but he has a good reputation. Though, he likes to meet with people in person so if you want to talk to him, you’re going to need to travel down to the South Pole."

Asami smiled. "Korra wanted to visit anyway, to see her parent’s. This is perfect. Before I talk with him, I’ll need to deal with my company first." she sighed, standing up. "I should go back to sleep. I have a long day tomorrow."

Baatar nodded his head. "Everything will be okay. You seem to be a persistent person. And you have a good team of people surrounding you to help."

Asami’s smile widened at that. "I do. Thank you, Baatar. Goodnight."

Baatar sighed as he looked down at his blue print. He felt like tomorrow was going to be long for himself, so he needed some sleep. He felt sympathy for Asami, and didn’t want to see her company crash and burn. He was definitely going to put up a fight with his father if he decides to pull out from working with Future Industries.

_____________________________

"What is this? What is going on?"

Zaheer walked up to the man who hides behind a mask, talking about equality, climbing his way to power. He was tied up to a chair, struggling. He was blindfolded. Zaheer knew he was actually a waterbender, and knew he could bloodbend. He is a liar. Everyone following him is following a liar. That’s the problem with people who wanted power— they’ll do _anything_ to obtain it.

"Your time as a power figure head is over. A new era is approaching, and that era does not have room for people like you." he looked over at Ming-Hua, nodding his head.

He walked out of the room, shutting the door to silence the screams of the masked man. He turned to Ghazan and P’Li. "Leave his body out in the open. I want everyone to know that the Equalist reign is over."

Ghazan stepped forward. "And what do you want us to do in the meantime?"

"Stay hidden. I need this book from one of the Air Temples. It’ll give me the last bit of information I need to take down the avatar."

"That could take weeks. There are many Air Temples. She is in the city now, we can do this."

Zaheer held his hand up to him to silence him. "We do not know if she is in the city for sure. We may not get a third chance at this. We must be careful with out actions from here on out. We will kill the avatar. Soon. Just be patient."

Zaheer sat down in a chair in front of the mirror, watching as P’Li began shaving his hair. A smile slowly crept onto his face.

_______________________________

Jinora walked to the meditation pavilion, sitting down. She crossed her legs, closing her eyes. She took inner breaths. With her father gone, she was to help oversee everything on Air Temple Island. It was a big responsibility, but something she was very excited to do. Her father didn’t give her a lot of room to be the master airbender she knew she could be. This was her chance to prove she can handle the responsibility of looking after the airbenders staying on Air Temple Island.

Jinora opened her eyes when she heard footsteps approaching her. She immediately stood when she saw an unfamiliar face. A man stood in front of her. She smiled warmly at him. "Can I help you?"

"I just moved into the city. I am an airbender, and they said I could find a place to stay here. Is that correct?"

Jinora bubbled up inside. Meeting new airbenders was still a big thing. Not many of them came to the temples, and not many of them embraced their new powers. So it was always excited to see new airbenders. "Of course. Air Temple Island is home to all airbenders." she held her hand out to him. "My name is Jinora."

He took her hand, smiling warmly down at her. "My name is Yorru. You’re a master airbender."

Jinora nodded her head, even though he wasn’t necessarily asking a question. "Yes, I am. Come, I’ll show you where the boy dorms are. My father, Master Tenzin, is away right now. But if you have any questions, you may come to me. We have meditation six times a day, before sun rise, after breakfast, three in the afternoon, and one after dinner. Training happens various hours of the day."

"Do you have a library on the island by any chance?"

Jinora nodded her head. "Yes, of course." she stopped, grabbing a small pack. "These are new clothing for you. The others will be so pleased to meet you. It’s always great seeing new faces."

He smiled, taking the bag from her. "Thank you."

She showed him around the island, pointing everything out to him. She felt nervous, not having done something like this without her father present. But she’s heard him do it a million times. She knew what she was doing. She showed him the library, which he took much interest in. She smiled at that. She loved reading too and learning about their nation. He seemed interested in that, too, and that made her happy. She stopped at his room, smiling when she saw Kai approaching.

"This is where you are going to stay. Any questions?"

He smiled down at her. "Just if the library is still open."

She laughed, nodding her head. "It’s open at all hours. This is now your home. You may do whatever you like."

He nodded his head. "I think I’m going to change and browse the library. I’ve always been interested in reading about our nations history."

Jinora waved behind him at her Aunt Kya. She walked over eyeing the new stranger curiously, folding her arms across her chest.

"Who is this?" she asked, her tone surprisingly not as friendly as Jinora would hope. She hoped the man didn’t catch on.

"He’s an airbender who just moved to Republic City. I’m showing him around the island." she assured her aunt with a smile.

Kya nodded her head, looking the guy up and down. She still didn’t seem too friendly towards him. "Alright." she reached out for Jinora. "Are you still busy? Meelo made a mess of the kitchen trying to cook—" she waved her hands in the air. "I just need your help cleaning it up."

Jinora looked back at the new airbender. "Are you okay for now?" he nodded his head with a smile. "If you need anything, just ask around. Everyone here is friendly and will gladly help you. Goodnight!"

She waved him off, walking away with Kya, and now Kai, to see the mess Meelo has made.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tell me your suspicions :)


End file.
